Once Upon a Time
by LisaJayy
Summary: This takes place after the first book. Christian lets Ana go (for the time being). But the Ana that we all know and love takes a turn for the worst and she finds her life turning completely upside down. Will our Christian save the only girl that he's ever loved? Or will it be too late to save Ana? This is my first ever FanFic. Please, please comment/review!
1. Life Takes a Turn

I look up from the reflection in the cracked mirror that is covered in a thin layer of filth. The young woman looking straight into my eyes isn't even recognizable anymore. Not even to its owner.

My once glossy and lively brown locks are now lifelessly hanging down my back as if they are weeping. My once vibrant, bright blue eyes now look like those made for a doll. They are cold and emotionless. Always opened wide. Looking for new forms of life. The purple bags etched under those same eyes started appearing about a month and a half ago. They make me seem as if I'm closer to forty instead of being in my early twenties. My face isn't the only part of my body that is suffering these long, sleepless nights. In about two months I'm estimating that I've lost nearly around twenty, maybe twenty five pounds. The clothing that I now own hang over my bony shoulders and my pants practically run toward my knees once I slip them over the sticks that I try to pass off as legs. Not to mention my ribs… I know that I used to be considered 'thin' and even 'skinny', but now I consider myself to be on the skeletal end of that spectrum. All of my ribs are visible, my hip bones protrude from body, and my cheekbones are way too sharp looking for my small face. I'm a walking skeleton. And it's only taken two months for me to get this way.

My life has taken a very drastic turn. Before I had my own apartment, good friends, a well-paying job, and even a love interest of some sort in my life… What happened?

I am now finding myself living in a cheap, dingy motel room somewhere on the outskirts of Seattle where smart people don't venture. The room that I now get the pleasure of calling home is small, but it's enough to at least fit in a twin sized mattress that comes equipped with a thin, cotton sheet that only has a couple stains on it and a brick for a pillow. Next to the bed is a nightstand that is topped off with a glass lamp that provides all of the light in the peeling room. The bathroom is about half the size of the "bedroom." Some of the yellow tiles are missing and the floor is covered in all sorts of dirt and God knows what else. The bathtub is right next to the small sink and only sprays out cold water. Oh, yeah. There's not heat anywhere in this motel. There is also a small window on the opposite side of the door that looks out into the alley outside. At night it lets in a cold draft of air which is when I know it's time to curl under my bed sheet. Sometimes when I'm lying in bed praying for sleep to take over, I'm able to hear some of the activities that occur just outside that window. I've heard a drug deal go on between three men, which eventually ended up with one of the men being jumped by the other two and getting stabbed a dozen times with a knife. One time an older man and a well-known prostitute fucked right on the other side of the window. After he was done he killed her. Right there. Just left her there like she didn't even matter in the least.

I didn't sleep for an entire week after that.

This is my life now. I'm cold. I'm hungry. I'm tired. I'm emotionally drained. I'm scared. I'm poor. I'm not the Anastasia that people once knew and pretended to love. I am forced to watch my back at every step and even then I'm still turning around to check if anybody is about to pull a knife out on me.

Standing in front of the motel mirror, I begin to think. No, not even think. I remember. I remember how my life pathetically ended up this way. It all started off with the fabulously handsome, and rich Christian Grey.


	2. So Weak

There once was a time when I had Christian all to myself. Yes, I did sign his stupid contract and yes, I did enjoy most of the perks it provided, but he also knew that I had hard limits as well. So stupidly, that one night I allowed myself to become submersed in his dominate and submissive lifestyle. I let Christian do whatever he wanted to me. I wanted to know how much it could hurt. But, by God, I didn't know it was going to hurt that much! He fucking whipped me. He used one of his leather belts across my backside. He liked that fucked up shit. Well, I didn't. I knew that I asked for it, I knew that he was like that, but I didn't expect for him that be like that with _me._ I loved the son of a bitch. I told him that I loved him! How could he enjoy seeing me that way? Let alone be the one who caused it? I was actually stupid enough to think that I was beginning to help him in some way. That maybe, just maybe, he was starting to feel something for me as well. Well, Ana, you were wrong about everything.

That night I left. I had to. I couldn't just stay with him and pretend that everything was all chocolates and daises. No more contract, no more rejection, no more Christian. That was my mindset. I left and he let me. I guess he felt like since I couldn't handle the minor belt whipping, then I wasn't even worth the chase. Well, that's fine. But, at that point I had a place to go and people to be with me. My apartment was my home and Kate was, of course, my best friend at the time. I still had my job and kept in contact with my mother and Ray. Then came the depression…

I was so weak. I still am. I let the Christian void pull me under into my deepest, darkest hell. I didn't go to work and when I did I wasn't at all there. Finally my boss gave up on trying to talk to me or get me help and pulled me into his office to tell me I was fired. Kate and Jose were there for me at first like any other good friends. Kate made me hot chocolate, wanted me to watch movies, and Jose even wanted me to go out with guys on the weekends. They didn't know how it was between me and Christian. Nobody did. One night I got so tired of Kate trying to act like she cared and snapped at her. I released all of my built up anger and anguish on my only friend. Jose was just caught in the crossfire and used his excuse of working not to talk to me anymore. Kate though, she had also had enough. She moved out and told me to call her once I "got my shit together." Fine, who needs them? I lost my apartment later on that week. As if the Gods were just using me as their target practice. I couldn't afford it. I didn't work. I just sat on my couch all day staring at my phone as if it contained all the answers. Should I call Christian? Shouldn't he be calling me? Why isn't he calling me? Doesn't he care at all? Did he meet another woman? I couldn't think about any of that. My mind was literally numb.

So, here I am now. In this shitty ass motel room just looking at myself in the mirror. Christian would be furious. He'd practically be shoving food down my throat at this point. The thought makes me laugh. Always wanting control. Sometimes I wish he would show up and just force me to eat or to do something ridiculously pointless that he values. But, he won't. I made sure that he would never be able to find me, or anybody for that matter. I don't have a car. I used the money Taylor got from Wanda and used it for the motel and small supplies such as alcohol. After I realized that he was never going to call me or e-mail me again, I threw my phone over a bridge. That was exhilarating. I wonder if my mom even knows where I am. I don't think shed care either way. She's probably on a cruise or something with one of her men. Ray is probably worrying though. Guilt rushes through me when I think of him. He didn't do anything wrong and yet I still try to push him and everybody else away. That's me. The new Ana that doesn't want to live because a guy she loves more than anything pushed her away without looking back.

It's really pathetic, I know. But, I don't know what else to do. I have nothing. I _am_ nothing. So, here I stay. Not knowing what else to do with myself. Late at night when I am at my lowest I feel like life would be better if I just wasn't here at all. It's not as if anybody is looking for me or cares where I am at all. The one person I want more than anything is probably busy fucking another "client" every fucking hour. I bet she can take a belt to the ass. I wonder if she knows that he can play the piano or that his favorite food is in fact sub sandwiches. It doesn't matter anymore anyway. Nothing does. I did this to myself and I'm the only one that can drag myself out of this hellhole that I created in the first place. And that's exactly what I'm going to do. I'm going to end this shitty life that I created for myself in the first place.


	3. On the Run- Christian's POV

Christian's POV

It's been exactly two months since I allowed Anastasia Steele to walk out of my life. She left after I introduced her to the real Playroom. She _fucking knew_ what I was like! She knew that I was a dominate and controlling motherfucker. She knew and yet she still asked me to show her how bad it could get. I hurt her though. I hurt her in every way that mattered. After she left it felt like somebody twice my size came in and was repeatedly punching me in the gut. She's the one that left. She's the one that told be goodbye. It's not like I actually wanted her to go. No, I never wanted her to leave. It took every ounce of my strength that night not to sling her over my shoulder and tie her up forever so she wouldn't leave me. I couldn't do that to her though. I've already hurt her enough. So, I let her go. I let her walk out so she could catch her breath and think rationally about what just happened. I didn't want to frighten her anymore. So I allowed her to walk out thinking that it would be the last time I would ever see her.

Now, two months later, I find myself, _the _Christian Grey, unable to sleep, unable to eat, and unable to find any other facial expression besides the scowl that I wear almost every day. I get up early every morning and go to GEH to run my company and then come home to my cold penthouse all alone. At night I can't sleep due to the excessive nightmares that flash through my fucked up head. With Ana, I very rarely had any nightmares, but now they're practically every night.

At the moment I'm sitting at my desk at work trying to listen in on a conference call when all I can think about is the brown hair, blue eyed girl that has completely changed my way of thinking.

_Oh, Ana. I miss you so much._ I should have never let her leave like that. I should have ran after her. Told her that I was sorry and that I would change for her. But, I didn't. I let her leave and for the past nine weeks I've been trying to get ahold of her to tell her just that. It hasn't been easy though. When I do call, which is almost every hour, her phone goes straight to voice mail. Her apartment has a 'For Sale' sign in the window and I can't find any traces of her whereabouts anywhere. I've even tried contacting her friend Kate, but she doesn't answer. All her mother had to say was that Ana's probably been busy with work and hasn't found any time to talk, and Ray tells me that he hasn't heard from her for a couple of weeks. By this point I'm honestly getting a little worried. I've sent Taylor out on a mission to find her, but he also says that it's like she practically vanished from thin air. _Did I really hurt her that badly that she would just leave?_ _Why wouldn't she at least inform somebody of where she's gone?_

"Mr. Grey?" A business partner of mine brings me back to the present. "Would you care to inform the rest of the board about your branching ideas?" I have no choice but to put on my best face and finish the meeting as the composed CEO that everybody knows me to be.

When the meeting is finally finished a good two hours later and I'm a good million dollars richer, I head home in the back of the Audi SUV with Taylor driving.

"Have you heard anything yet?" I ask him quietly. Even to me my voice sounds weak and tired.

"No, Sir." Taylor softly replies. "But I did contact her former boss and he says that Miss Steele was let go about a month or so ago."

Let go? The thought run wildly through my head.

"Do you mean to tell me that Ana was fired from her job?"

"Yes, Sir. He also said that she hasn't been heard from for quite some time."

My cold heart drops lower into my stomach at his words? Fired? What could my sweet, little Ana do to get fired? None of this makes any sense. In order to find her I'm going to have to take matters into my own hands even if it means taking a picture of her and showing it to every single individual in the Seattle area.

I _will_ find my Ana.


	4. Black Amber

The amber colored liquid burns as it easily slides down my throat. I've never been much of a drinker, occasionally wine or something fruity, but whiskey is some addictive shit! Before I never knew why people became alcoholics. Why would they let something as simple as a drink take control of their lives? Well, now I know the answer. Alcohol numbs the pain, both internally and externally. I don't consider myself to be an alcoholic, but I've become acquainted to the glass bottles.

Sitting at the food of my bed I catch a glimpse outside the window. Rain falls from the dark sky in buckets. I can only make out vague shapes and colors through the waterfall. Ugh, I hate when it rains. Some of the water leaks through the bottom of the window and drips all over the nasty, stained carpet. The carpet appears to be a soft shade of yellow, but I swear it all used to be white at some point.

_God, I hate it here._

I look down into my lap to see that I've drank more than I though. I only have about a shot or two left. I know that once my drink is gone than I'm screwed. With a clear mind I'm forced to come face to face with my shitty reality and realize what little I'm worth now. I can't have that. I grab the side of the bed with my free hand and manage to use all my strength left to pull myself up onto my two feet. I swag back and forth for a minute before I straighten myself and can actually still my vision again. Once up I slowly walk toward the mattress and find the only good piece of clothing that I have left. I drop the almost empty glass bottle onto the floor and slip on the cream colored trench coat that is even equipped with a hood. Of course it feels a little too roomy for my new frame, but it'll have to do.

Once I tie the coat around my thin waist I check to make sure I have a couple bills in my pocket and make my way over to the door that separates my weeping mind from the cold outside world. I make my way through the rotting door and step out into the even darker hallway. There's about six rooms total in this narrow hallway. On my side there's three rooms, including mine, and two more across from me. The last room is apparently a cleaning closet that I'm only assuming nobody here uses. At all. I walk down the hallway until I find the exit that leads outside into the mouth of the alley right outside my window.

_Jesus, it's cold out here._

When I first found this place I noticed that there was a liquor store a couple blocks away. That was the first place I went. At first I started out getting white wine and nothing else, but now I've advanced to whiskey and vodka. That's the only stuff that helps me get at least two hours of sleep at night.

I brace myself as I walk out into the freezing rain and wrap my arms around my middle just to try and stay somewhat warm. The shoes I'm currently wearing do absolutely nothing to shield my feet from the puddles of water scattered around the broken sidewalk. Flip-flops would stand a better chance in this weather than these fucking slippers.

_I'm such a fucking idiot. Yeah Ana, go get drunk and then go out to get more booze so you can get even more drunk. Great plan. _

To get to the store from the motel I have to walk past three alleys, two stop lights, and another motel. I've done this walk so many times that I bet I could do it blindfolded at this point. I walk past alley number two and my head automatically glances down to see if anything dangerous is lurking about.

_Shit! _Just my fucking luck. I look over to see these three guys standing over a giant mass of something. It looks like whatever it is, it's wrapped with a giant, black garbage bag.

_Don't look anymore. Just keep walking. _

Christian would always get irritated with me for not listening. Well, now I see why he feels that way. It's like my body has a mind of its own because it completely ignore the sober part of my mind and stop in my tracks to stare at the three men. I get a better look and see that they all are very tall, very big, and have very big tattoos running up and down their sleeveless arms. They all have dark skin and make heavy grunting noises as they try to lift the large, black mass. For some unknown reason I cannot find it in me to look away. I'm still staring as they manage to lift the top half of the bag and all I see is a pale, lifeless arm fallout from the plastic wrapping.

_Don't throw up, don't throw up. Please for the love of God don't draw attention to yourself. _

I scream. I fucking scream bloody murder.

I see the panic on their faces as all three heads snap up to see where the sound came from. I'm so shocked that I'm still fucking standing there like a deer caught in a cars headlights.

Finally one of them speaks. "Well, well…look at what we got here." His voice sounds as if somebody dragged barbed wire up his throat and he's not allowed to drink to clear it up.

"A pretty lady like you shouldn't be wonderin' around lookin' for a show. You find yourself in trouble just like this pretty set of tits did." I didn't notice it before but apparently he was holding a knife in his left hand. He uses it to point to the girl lying on the concrete floor. As if that wasn't enough, out of the corner of my eye I see the other two slowly rise from their kneeling position and grab some sort or rope from the ground and wrap it around their clenched up fists. A very clear threat.

_Fucking run, Ana._

Without thinking I take off. I don't even care where or how, but I'm gone. I silently beg my shoes to stay on my feet as I fly through puddle after puddle all while screaming my head off. My breathing is so rapid that I can barely hear their loud footsteps chasing after me.

_Thump, thump, thump, thump._

I hear them shouting behind me as I take a sharp turn down the first alley that I see first. Hopefully this one will lead to a more populated street and I can find some help.

"We gonna get you, little bitch!" I hear them shout. "Can't run from us!"

As I'm running I begin to feel the little hair on the back of my neck stand up and goose bumps appear on the skin of my arms and shoulders.

_Shit. No!_

Before I even have time to register what the hell is happening I fell a rough hand grab the hood that fell off during my sprinting spree. It throws me back and into the chest of my attacker.

"Gotcha not, bitch." He brings his thick, hairy arm across my chest and holds me to him.

"Stop fucking screaming!" He shouts in my ear. I don't stop. I don't want to die. Not yet.

I continue to scream until I feel a sharp blow connect to my right temple. My vision goes hazy and I have to choice but to stop screaming.

_Christian. Christian, I love you. _It's the last thought I have before everything goes solid black.


	5. Finally!-Christian's POV

Christian's POV

_Finally! Fucking finally!_

After running around like a fucking mad man, I've finally found a lead to the whereabouts of my precious Ana. All day and night, Taylor and I have been running around this city like crazy showing people a picture of Ana, mentioning some of the people she knows, and demanding to know where she might be staying or going. I've canceled all of my business meetings for the day and told Andrea not to interrupt me for anything unless it has to do with Miss Steele. I've hit a lot of dead ends in the past 12 hours. Her former boss knows absolutely nothing, restaurant owners can't seem to pinpoint her face, and all the taxi drivers in this city are too drunk or too high most of the time to even acknowledge one passenger from another.

But finally it dawned on me. If Ana doesn't have a car and is trying to get away without using a taxi, the next form of public transportation is the city bus. So, here I am at the Seattle Bus Station holding up a picture of Ana to a guy that smells like beer and cigarettes and wearing a toupee for hair. But, God do I love him at this moment. Well, not literally of course. His name is Frank and he's the only one that's noticed Ana from the moment he looked at her smiling face.

"Yeah, I recognize her." He says while lighting yet another cigarette. "You don't forget a pretty face like that, or a nice ass for that matter."

_Whatever you do, do not punch his face in._

Taylor is standing next to me while I'm holding up the picture.

"Sir, can you tell us where you saw Miss Steele? Did she get on a bus?" Taylor asks in his usual professional manner.

"Yeah, she hopped on at the corner or Fifth and Sixth. I know because I was driving the hunk of metal at the time. She wasn't smiling like that though," He says while gesturing to the picture. "She actually looked kinda sad. Kept looking down at her feet and stuff. Poor girl."

I gave my heart a moment to relax before I spoke up. "Where did she go? Did she say anything about where she was going? And what was she wearing? Was her hair up or down? Did she carry any bags with her? What color were her shoes?" I couldn't stop the questions from flowing out of my mouth. This guy saw Ana and I need all the information he has in order to find her.

"Whoa, man, calm down. All I know is that she said something about going up toward Pioneer Square. I dropped her off in front of a Motel 6. I remember that she had on these tight ass jeans and a purple shirt, I think. And as far a bag, I think she had a little black purse of some sorts."

Pioneer Square? Why would she go there? That's one of the worst areas in Seattle. That's the type of place that people carry around guns as if they were tick-tacks. And in a _Motel 6 _of all places? God damnit…

"Thank you, Sir for all of your help. We'll have to contact the motel owner and see if she's still there." It takes me a moment to realize that Taylor is now talking to me.

"Whatever it takes." I reply sternly.

"So…is this girl in some kind of trouble or something? I mean, she doesn't look the type, but in my line of work I do see a lot of weird shit. This one time I caught-"

"No," I quickly say. "I haven't been able to get a hold of her for a while and I'm just trying to find her before she gets_ herself_ into any trouble."

The guy looks at me with a knowing sparkle in his eyes.

"Ahh, the one that got away, huh? Yeah, I had one of those. She got mad because I came home drunk one too many times. I woke up hung over as fuck and she was gone. Took me a whole fucking month to finally find her and beg for forgiveness."

He looks down at the ground and a slight, but genuine smile appears across his face.

"We're married now with two kids. Just go easy on her man and she'll come around."

I wish drinking was my issue here. Instead I'm the abusive dominate who likes to whip girls with leather belts.

_Nice, Grey._

"Yeah, well, we'll see where this takes us." I say as I reach into the back of my jeans to pull out my wallet.

"Here," I hand him my business card. "If you hear anything then give me a call. Night or day, I'll be awake."

He takes it and glances at the front before I see his eyes budge out of his head. _Oh, here we go…_

"Wait a minute," He says real quickly. "You're Christian Grey? As in Seattle's richest CEO bachelor? _That_ Christian Grey?

_If I had a nickel for every time this has happened…_

"Yeah, I guess I am. Oh, and another thing," I say while reaching back into my wallet to pull out a wad of hundred dollar bills. "Treat the wife and kids sometime. I really appreciate your help, like, you have no idea." I had him the cash.

He looks at me and I actually see unshed tears in his eye. If he starts crying I don't know what I'm going to do.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Grey. I hope you find your girl. You two deserve each other."

I give a solid nod before Taylor and I make our way over to the SUV. Taylor drives while I sit in the passenger seat.

"So, Mr. Grey, are you ready to head over to Pioneer Square to find Miss Steele?" He glances at me and I can see the determination in his eyes as well as hear it in his voice.

"Whatever it takes to get Ana back home safely." I say as Taylor backs the Audi out of the station and heads towards the highway.


	6. Giving up

My head is throbbing. It's as if somebody took a baseball bat to my freaking skull. The last thing I remember is walking to the liquor store and then I saw… _oh, wait…_

The first thing I notice is that I'm freezing. A cold draft finds its way around my entire body. I'm not wearing my jacket, or any shirt for that matter. All I can feel is my bra wrapped around my chest and my wet jeans are still around my waist.

_Why are my jeans so wet?_

Realization hits me as I instinctively start to thrash around and try to see where I am. I can't move any part of my body. I can feel my eyes opening, but all I'm seeing is a black haze. Between my lips is a cloth of some sort, keeping me from screaming any more than I already have. All I can get out is tiny muffles and even then my throat is so scratched up from the previous screaming that I can barely manage those.

_Shit! Those men. They took me. They seriously fucking took me!_

I try my best to scream and wiggle my body as much as possible. I can tell that I'm sitting in a chair with my hands bound behind my back and my ankles are tied together in between the two front legs.

_Fuck._

I try my hardest to move, but I freeze when I hear creaking coming from my right. It's an eerie sound. The one that you hear in old movies when the mobster is slowly walking down the stairs to cut off a guy's tongue or some shit like that. The sound sends the hairs on my arms and neck to stand straight up. My neck locks in place and I lean forward in the chair and I brace my entire body as if I'm waiting for impact. That sound doesn't even compare to the voice that I hear next.

"Well, well, well…it looks as if our little beauty queen here is finally awake."

It's that voice. That raspy, nails against a chalkboard voice that has me cowering back into the corner as if I'm an abused puppy.

"We thought we may have killed you. Good thing we didn't."

_What the hell does that mean?_

"So, Miss Steele, is it?"

_How does he know my name?_

"How do you know Christian Grey?" He says in that same bone chilling tone. I try to ignore the way my heart skips a beat at the mere mention of his beautiful name.

At this point at least he realizes that I'm not able to speak due to the cloth shoved down my throat. I feel his slimy fingers tug roughly at the back where the knot is tied and pulls until it comes undone. I move my jaw back and forth until it regains feeling before I finally speak up.

"Who wants to know? How do you know Christian? Why did you take me? What are you going to do with me? How does this have anything to do with him?" The words flow out of my mouth before he cuts me off.

"You ask a lot of questions for the girl tied up in a chair in a beat-up old basement," He says. "Now, to answer your questions, I'm going to need some answers from you first, my sweet little ass." His words send shivers up my spine.

"Fuck you." I spit.

His hand comes slashing through the air so fast that I can actually hear the wind it makes before slapping across my face. I've never been hit so hard in my life. I see white little dots behind my eyelids and can taste the blood on the corner of my left lip.

_Shut up, Ana._

"Now, if you're done running your smart mouth you can tell me how you know Grey." He commands.

I give in. "He's a friend." I say. He doesn't need to know anymore.

"A friend you say," I can hear the smile in his voice. "Well from what I see you two are more than just friends my dear."

That takes me by surprise. _What is he talking about?_

Before I can ask I feel the same rough hands rip the blindfold off my face. Once I can see I scan the room. I'm sitting in a chair that is true. The small room around me is made out of all concrete. Metal pipes run above me to create the ceiling, there's no furniture anywhere, and the only light is being provided by a small light bulb hanging a couple inches in front of me. To my right there are a series of wooden stair that lead up to a place I can't see. There's not even any windows. I miss my little alleyway motel window.

My thoughts are broken as my capture puts his face right in front of my vision. He's the same man that was chasing after me before. Dark skinned, tattoos running up his arms, and there's even some on his face. He has a head of short, curly black hair and his face is a little too rounded, but what strikes me the most is that his eyes are a pitch black. Not even a dark brown. Full on black. I start to shiver and have to look away.

_Where are the other two men?_

"About three months ago you were photographed with Grey at some stupid flashy event. Now, what I want to know is how you're involved with Grey in the first place." He barks.

I may as well answer him. "I'm not with Grey in any sense. We were…" I'm trying to look for the right word. "Friends with benefits for a while, but then we ended it."

Saying all this out loud makes water rush into my eye._ Don't cry. Not here._

I wanted them to be a lie, but they are the truth in a way.

"Ah, friends with benefits, huh? What happened? Couldn't give him any more tight pussy so he threw you to the side like he does with every other woman that is thrown onto his fucking lap?"

Ouch. His words sting more than they should.

I hear rustling coming from his back and see that he's pulling a piece of paper out of his back pocket. He holds it up in front of my face so I can see it.

It's a tabloid picture. Taken of Christian and I at some charity event. I'm wearing a tight, plum dress that hugs all my curves and Christian looks handsome as always while wearing a crisp Armani suit. Most importantly though, we are both smiling in this picture. Christian's holding onto my waist gazing down at me while I'm looking up at him with this content expression on my face. We look in love. I let the water flow from my eyes silently.

"Oh, don't start the fucking waterworks. You obviously know Christian. And I want something from him. Something that he's not going to give away freely unless I have something he wants."

He stands up and crumples the paper up into a wad and tosses it next to a drain in the center of the concrete floor.

_How appropriate. _

"What do you want? I don't know Christian anymore. I can't give you anything. Just let me go." My voice sounds as if I'm pleading. That's probably a good idea anyway.

"You see," He ignores me. "I never wanted any trouble. Me and my boys were minding our own business and then you come along and start screamin' and shit over a dead body, so we had to do something." He says this as if it were no big deal,

"So, we catch you. Knock ya out for an hour and then we realize that we've seen you before. You're Grey's girl. Now, I can see your confusion, but we just captured the girl who belongs to one of the richest men in the fucking U.S! Can you see where there's a gold mine in that?" He's laughing as he says all this. He actually looks happy with himself.

"So," He's still speaking. "I can either hold you for ransom of ten million dollars or I can just kill you now and call it a day well spent."

My breathing halts altogether. He can't do this. I don't deserve to die! I've done nothing wrong but fall in love with a man who would rather have a sex doll than a normal human being! No way am I going to die over that.

I tug on my arms so hard that I think I popped my shoulder. This guy cannot tie a rope to save his life because my arms are free after a couple seconds of intense pulling. I very quickly reach down and tug up on the ankle rope until it too, comes undone. I'm free. I stand up and make a break for the stairs until the black-eyed man realized what I've done and grabs me by the neck with both of his hands. He squeezes me so tightly that I begin to feel the darkness taking over once more until my back is slammed onto the cold, solid concrete. My head hit it hard, but surprisingly I'm still conscious.

"Oh, come on now baby,"

His voice is teasing me. It dawns on me that his body is fully on top of mine. His face is directly in front of mine and I can smell his disgusting breath travel down my throat. His black eyes look me up and down hungrily.

"Don't run. We're just getting started. Since you're so well acquainted with Grey, I was thinking you may as well get acquainted with me." He has the fucking nerve to grind his lower body with mine.

_This is it. I'm going to die in this basement at the hands of this monster. I won't ever be able to see Christian again._

The thought has me going hysteric. I begin to wail cries of anger, anguish, and loss all at once. Hot tears roll down my cheeks, onto the sides of my neck, and into my hair as I trash my head side to side. I try to wiggle out of his grasp, but he's so fucking strong. He holds my lower half down with his feet and his hands force my shoulders down toward the ground.

He laughs a dark chuckle. "Scream all you want, Sugar. Ain't nobody gonna hear you down here." At the same time I fell a slimy, wet tongue trace its way up the side of my neck and a hand slither its way under my bra. I scream as loud as I possibly can until my temples are throbbing in unison to my heartbeat.

I can't do anything but lie there helplessly. I stop kicking my legs because every time I do, I get a chunk of my neck bitten so hard that I can feel the blood oozing out of the opened wound. His hand circles my chest over and over until he unclasps my bra from the front.

I can't stop crying. Dry heaves take over and I'm shaking in both fear and helplessness.

_Why won't somebody come looking for me now? _

My hearing goes in and out, but I can faintly make out slow footsteps coming down those termite invested stairs. All I know is that they don't sounds like good footsteps.

_This is it. This is my death sentence. _


	7. Baby Blues-Christian's POV

Christian's POV

_What the hell is it with Motel fucking 6?_

Taylor and I arrive at this shitty excuse for a motel about twenty minutes after we left the bus station. Apparently here they're not allowed to provide any information about customers unless they're family related. So, after about another twenty minutes of arguing with a balding, middle-aged man, he finally informs us about Anastasia. That is, after I threw another wad of cash at his face.

_What is it with people and money?_

The man tells us that she's been staying here for over a month and after telling him about our situation, he allows us to search her room for any clues as to where she could be. Apparently he saw her leave earlier this afternoon heading toward the liquor store. He also said that she walks there quite often and comes back with brown bags full of liquor.

_This can't be my Ana…can it?_

As we enter her so called "room" which is more like a gas station restroom, I'm appalled. This is where she's seriously been living all this time? The cheap wallpaper is peeling, the carpet is turning an unnatural shade of yellow, and there's a cold chill that runs through the small space. As I look around nothing stands out at first. There's a small mattress with a single sheet scrunched up in the middle, the light to the shoe sized bathroom is still on, and there's a puddle of water underneath the only window in the room. But still no sign of Ana. No bad, no clothing, no personal products anywhere. I'm beginning to think that we were told the wrong room until Taylor speaks up.

"Sir, I think we may have found something." He bends down and picks up something from underneath the bed. It's a glass bottle. Whisky if I'm to be exact. Why would she be drinking that stuff?

"The guy did say that she went to the liquor store a lot." Taylor says while looking intensively at the bottle. "It's empty. Perhaps she went to the store to get more."

He has a valid point. The motel man even said the same thing. I'm getting more irritated by the second. I just want to find her already! I want to tell her everything that I've been afraid to say and show her how much I really love her! Is that too much to fucking ask?

"Fuck it. Let's go check there then." I say and start heading out the door until I feel Taylor grasp my arm. My head snaps up at him waiting for an explanation.

"Sir, we will find her. If it's the last thing I do _we will _find Ana." His voice is solid. I nod and touch his arm in a silent gesture. He nods back and we both step out into the hallway.

We're standing outside the liquor store and there's still been no fucking sign of Ana anywhere! Where in the hell is this girl?

Taylor is looking around the area looking for clues. What kind of clues, I don't fucking know. I'm exhausted both emotionally and physically. Maybe she just really doesn't want to be found.

_God damnit, no. I will find my Ana._

I get up from the wet bench, thank God it's stopped raining, and walk around in circles murmuring to myself.

"If I were Ana where would I go? What would I do? Does she even know anybody out here? What if-"

My monologue is cut short when I notice that there is another person standing beside me. An older woman, maybe in her fifties, darker skin and hair that is full of gray, is just standing there staring up at me with this strange expression on her face. She looks as if she's afraid to tell me something.

"May I help you?" I ask. I didn't mean to sound that aggravated even though that's exactly how I feel.

She stares for a moment longer until finally speaking, "Um… I'm sorry, but are you looking for somebody? A woman maybe?"

My head snaps down to look her directly in her eyes. Has she seen Ana? What if she knows…no. I can't let myself feel that amount of hope even if that's all my heart feels at the current moment.

"Yes," I say. "Yes, I am. Can you tell me where she is? That is, if we're referring to the same woman."

Taylor comes over to stand at my side. I guess he heard the lady as well or noticed my extreme interest in conversation.

"Well, this girl is very thin. Probably no more than twenty five. She has long brown hair, blue eye as far as I could tell, and she was wearing a white jacket with blue jeans and had on these terrible black slipper shoes of some sorts."

Taylor speaks up for me, "Ma'am, when did you last see this young lady?"

"Right at that corner. Right next to that alley." She points to the alley opening a couple feet away. "I was out running some errands of my own when I heard this screaming coming from her. She was standing right there," She points again. "And then she started running toward that alley over there." She uses her pointer finger to trace the path she took.

I can't breathe. What if that was Ana? Why was she running and screaming?

"Do you know what she was running from?" Taylor asks, as if he read my mind.

"All I know was that there was these three big, black guys chasing after her. Poor girl couldn't run in her damn shoes. She must have don't that gang wrong or something. Around here nobody asks questions, especially with a gang run by a guy named Nails. That's how you get yourself a casket in the ground."

I can even see straight at this point. There's a feeling in my stomach as well as my heart saying that this is Ana she's talking about.

I find my voice. "Where did she go?" I demand. "Where did these men take her?" I'm practically shouting at the poor woman, but at this point I don't give a rat's ass. I need to find my Ana.

"They followed her down that alley and then the last thing I saw was them dragging her body into that abandoned house right over there." She points to a building about ten feet away.

I don't even think as I sprint across the street up onto the building's front landing. I hear Taylor say his thanks and joins me trying to break down the locked door. Taylor gives a firm, powerful kick to the handle and the wooden flat swings open into the inside of the house.

"Ana!" I begin shouting. My heart beats rapidly in my chest. Adrenaline is being pumped through my body as I open my mouth again. Taylor quickly covers my scream and whispers in my ear, "We don't know if those men are still here. We need to be quiet." I nod.

"Now, the first place they would take her is to the basement." He walks a couple of steps to an already opened door. My heart beats even faster as he pulls out a gun out of the waistband of his pants and points it directly in front of him. He motions for me to come with him as he slowly walks down the stairs.

I stand next to him and take in my surroundings. Wooden steps, concrete walls, not a lot of light, and then I hear it. Muffled screams. A woman's screams. Ana's muffled screams.

Before Taylor and I even make it to the bottom of the steps there is movement. Everything happens in a matter of seconds. Taylor bolts down the steps with me right behind him and holds the gun up and starts shouting.

"Get down now! I will fucking shoot you if you make another fucking move! Now get off the girl and move up against the wall and put your hands where I can see them!"

I hear more screaming coming from what I presume are two other men.

"Fuck man, I knew we should have just killed her." One voice says.

"Fuck!" The other one shouts.

I'm frozen. What the hell is going on right now? I can't seem to find my legs.

I notice that Taylor is walking toward the two men.

"Sir." He says to snap me out of my trance. I look at him with wide eyes and see that he is motioning with his heads to the middle of the concrete room.

_Ana. She's here_.

I don't even know my legs are moving until I find myself kneeling over her body. I look down at her and take it all in at once…

Her eyes are clenched shut and her body doesn't make a sound. Her face is all bruised up. Her hair is all matted at the top of her head. There's a giant red mark running from her ear all the way to her lip where blood has collected at the corner. Her cheekbones appear to be sunken in drastically and stained with dried tears.

I slowly raise my hand up to gently cup her left cheek and subconsciously run my thumb over her tortured skin.

Moving my hand lower I let it hover the rest of the way toward her neck which is punctured with about a dozen bite marks. They are purple bruises now, but there is still some blood etched into them. Her entire top half is bare. The same bite marks are all over her naked breasts, and I notice that there are scratch marks raiding her sides and up to her shoulders.

_As if somebody were holding her down…_

I didn't notice it before, but a cloud of water covers my vision and stings my eyeballs. I blink and all this liquid comes pouring out and drops onto Ana's bare stomach. My heart is aching. All the adrenaline is gone and in its place is pure anguish. She looks terrible and like an angel at the same time. When was the last time she's eaten anything? Why wouldn't she try to at least contact me or somebody?

_Because you hurt her. Remember? You're the one that pushed her to this. _

I've never cried in my adult life, but I start heaving out sobs and more tears follow.

I look even lower to find that her jeans are unbuttoned and pulled down to her knees. Her panties are still around her hips, but they appear to be drawn to the side…

I start sobbing heavily. I just let the tears run freely now.

"Oh, Ana," I cry. "What have they done to you?" More sobs.

I manage to move my hands in order to pull her damp jeans back over her hips where they belong. I then slide the black jacket I'm wearing over my shoulders and gently drape it across her middle and chest area. I focus back on her face. I know she's still breathing. I can feel it underneath my hand, but it's very shallow. It worries me. I take my hand and place it softly back onto her cheek.

"Ana…Ana, baby. Can you hear me?" No response.

_She's probably in shock._

"Ana, it's me. Christian. Everything is alright now, sweetheart. I'm here." I softly speak to her. I just need her to open her eyes and that would be enough for me. Just to see those baby blues again.

"Ana, can you open your eyes for me? Come on, baby… just open those beautiful eyes." I sob as I'm speaking. I realize that I'm crying all over her face and move my hand from her cheek to gently whip the salty water away. As I do this I hear a soft moan coming from her slightly parted mouth.

Hope once again rises in my chest.

"Ana. Ana, sweetheart, can you hear me?"

Another moan follows.

"Shh, baby, don't try to talk if it's too much. Just open your eyes for me, okay?"

I stare at her closed eyes until I begin to see her eyelashes flutter.

"That's it, Ana." I say as I gently caress her hair.

I don't even notice that Taylor is standing next to us. Has he been here the whole time? I don't even give a fuck either way.

Finally Ana manages to peel back her eyelids to reveal the only eyes that have ever captivated my soul.

_I could look at those blue eyes forever. _

She stares straight up at me and at first I don't even think she sees me until her beautiful eyes begin filling with tears.

"Shh, Ana. It's alright now. You're safe. I'm going to get you out of here. Shh, baby, no more crying." I can't looks away from her and it appears that she can't look away from me either.

_God, I love this woman. _


	8. Prince Charming

I'm so cold. This hard floor is seriously messing up my back.

_What if the men come back?_ My subconscious thinks.

Just moments ago I felt like the end was near. That the two men were going to completely tear me apart in every sense of the word. Black Eyes was on top of me trying to pull my jeans down, but due to them being damp and stiff from the rain, he had issues with getting them past my knees. Then the second man came down the steps. Here I thought it was somebody coming to rescue me, but instead it was one of them coming down to "get a little action." His voice was just as dark as the other man's eyes. The second man was called Tiny, I later found out. He came down to just stand next to the staircase and stare at the scene in front of him. Apparently he called dibs on seconds.

_Where is the third one?_

I doesn't matter anyway. I'll probably be dead by the time he comes back to claim thirds. I began to shut myself out from the basement world. I couldn't just give up though. I  
turned my head to the side and kept up my screaming. Well, the little, muffles wails that counted as my screaming.

I thought Black Eyes was going to succeed in taking me in the most horrific way. His hands rand all over my body, he bit me in places that I never knew I had, and I even felt him try and pull my panties down, but he only managed to pull them aside since I instinctively clenched my thighs together. I seriously thought that I was going to die right there. That was until all movement stopped. I didn't feel his hands on me anymore. The heavy weight of his body wasn't on top of mine anymore.

_What the…? _I thought.

Even though I was trying my best to stay in my isolated mind, I could faintly hear shouting coming from all around me. I heard a somewhat familiar voice barking out commands and the men's voices followed those as well.

_Are there more of them?_

I didn't even want to think about that. I've already accepted the fact that I'm going to die. I'm not going to die in any more fear than what I already have now. I do my best to shut the voices out and lock my body up as much as I possibly can in my weak state. When I feel a hand lay on my cheek I expect to be hard and roughly slapping me across the face. This hand though, this hand feels soft and almost comforting in a way…familiar.

_They're just taunting me._

As I feel the same hand move across my body, I find that it doesn't scare me like the others did. No, this one was gentle with the way it slowly pulled my pants back up, and draped some sort of cloth over my naked chest. I hear a soft voice enter my ears and run straight toward my heart.

_That voice. I know that voice._

"Ana. Ana, sweetheart, can you hear me?" The same velvety soft voice asks.

_Yes, yes I hear you._

The voice softly asks me to open my eyes again and again.

_Do I even know how to do that? _My eyes have been sealed shut for such a long time.

I manage to listen and slowly start to peel my eyelids back. I'm staring at the pipe ceiling. The light bulb hangs slightly to my left. But, then there's a face places directly in my line of vision. This face has the most beautiful gray eyes that I've ever seen. No more back eyes.

_Christian._

Tears spring into my eyes as I look up at him. He doesn't say anything. He just continues to stare at me with an expression full or relief, anger, and longing all at the same time. I could look at him forever.

The voice that I heard before speaks up first. It's Taylor.

"Sir, I've called 911. The ambulance is on its way." His voice isn't as rough as it was before. It sounds more drained if anything. Like he just stayed up an entire week without getting any sleep.

"Thank you, Taylor." Christian says without breaking contact with me.

I know I should be pissed at him. I wouldn't be in this situation right now if he didn't fucking whip me and allow me to leave things like we did. But all I can think about during this exact moment is that he's here with me now. He's here and I don't care what happens after this. He could take me back and drop me off at my shitty motel room for all I care. I just want him to get me the hell out of here anyway possible.

I hear Taylor's footsteps retreat up the stairs before Christian speaks directly to me this time.

"Ana…Ana…I'm so sorry. I didn't want any of this to happen." I can hear the raw emotion in his voice.

"This is all my fault. I know it is. But trust me, baby, I'm going to make it all better. I promise." He goes on. "Just don't give up on me just yet. I'll do anything-"

I finally find my voice so I can cut him off before he speaks again.

"Christian," My voice is so raspy. "Just get me out of here." I simply say. All the talking can wait. What matters at this moment is that Christian and I are together and that I'm still alive. I just want to get off this floor and out of this basement.

He looks down at me. "Okay. Okay, baby." He places his hands on the tops of my shoulders. "Can you sit up?"

I try my best to find the strength in my bones. I manage to pull my upper body up into a sitting position with the help of Christian. The cloth that was draped over me happens to be one of Christian's large, fleece jackets. He touches me as if I were made of glass as he slips my arms into the soft sleeves and zips the front. I lean forward and move my arms to help him. My muscles protest the movement. It feels like somebody took a metal baseball bat and started beating me as if I were a piñata. I close my eyes when I finally sit all the way up. My head swims with dizziness and at first I feel like I'm going to throw up, but I somehow find myself sitting up with Christian's hands on my back supporting me.

I look over at him. He is so beautiful. He offers me a slight smile before a group of feet come storming down the stairs.

"Miss Steele," A man wearing blue scrubs says. "We're here to help you, okay?" The team of about five men come over to where Christian and I sit. Christian stands up to give them room to pick me off the floor, but he never lets go of my hand. They lift me onto a yellow and white stretcher that was brought down behind them. I try to tell them that I'm fine, but everybody keeps insisting that I need to go to the hospital.

"Ana, just let them take care of you." Christian tells me and gently pushes me down to lay back on the stretcher.

_Always in control._

They pick me up and start to carry me up the stairs and out of the house. Relief floods through me. I'm finally leaving this fucking basement. If I weren't in so much pain at the moment, I'd probably be laughing and throwing my hands up in pure joy. Then I remember where I am, and where I'm going for that matter. I'm all alone. I don't have and friends or family to come meet me at the hospital. Hell, they probably think I've been working all this time.

_I don't want to be alone anymore._

"Christian! Christian don't leave me!" I shout while stretching my arm towards him. He fell behind as I was being carried up the stairs.

I'm being lifted into the ambulance when Christian makes his way up to hop in behind me.

"Taylor," He shouts out the back doors. "I'm riding with Ana. Meet us at the hospital."

The doors shut and two EMTs climb in the back to sit with us. They immediately start to take my vitals and toss around a bunch of cloths and wires. I didn't even notice that I was still wearing Christian's black jacket.

"Ana," Christian begins. "I will not leave you, okay? Do you hear me?" His gray are burning hole into mine. I nod while looking at him.

"Good." He seals his statement with a soft kiss on my forehead. "Everything is going to be alright."

_That is until I'm pushed away again. _The bitter part of me speaks.


	9. Together Again-Christian's POV

Christian's POV

I don't think my heart can take much more. The amount of relief, worry, love, and a whole lot of mixed emotions threated to make it burst into nothing.

Ana is now in the Seattle Hospital where she belongs. Right when we arrived in the ambulance she was brought into a room on the third floor and I was told that I would have to wait to see her so the nurses and doctors could run some tests. It's almost one o'clock in the fucking morning. How much longer can I fucking wait?

I've never needed the connection before, but it's great knowing someone in the medical field, especially when that someone is your own mother.

My mother, Grace, is one of the head nurses at this hospital. When she found out that Ana and I were coming in she immediately jumped on the case on ushered me into Ana's hospital room. Ana was taken into a special room to get X-rays, so I guess I have no choice but to talk to my mother since I can't go in with her. Grace pulls me aside to ask what happened. I briefly told her the main parts of the story starting when Ana and I broke up and ended when I found her abused in a kidnapper's basement.

"_Jesus," _She says while turning away to shake her head. "Christian, that poor girl. How could you let her do this to herself?"

"Mom, I didn't want her to do this." I practically spit out the words. "I never wanted this for her. All I wanted was for us to have some space and work out our issues as a couple. I didn't fucking tell her to go jump on a bus and almost get herself raped for God's sake!" My head is beginning to throb and my stomach does a couple twists. I make my way over to a bench on the opposite wall from the hospital bed. I need to calm down.

_Ana's here. Ana's here. She's alive. She's alive. _

"Christian, watch your mouth." She sits next to me. I've never been much of a "Mama's Boy," but the feeling of Grace's hand running up and down my arm is strangely comforting.

"Christian, Ana loves you. And she's here with you now. She's going to be okay and you two will work things out." More comfort words.

Her words do relax me slightly. I'm not going to let Ana leave again without knowing how I feel about her. I've made a mistake and I'm not one to make the same mistake twice.

"Mom," I begin. "She could have been raped for all I know. The way I found her…" I couldn't continue with that thought. "If she was raped by those men, then It'll be like _I'm_ the one that did that to her. I forced it to happen." Tears make their way to my eyes once again. I can't think about this. It literally makes me want to throw up just thinking about it.

"We're going to do a rape kit on her once she comes back from X-rays." Grace says while stroking my arm. "In fact, she should be back any minute."

As if on cue the room doors open and Ana and two other nurse come in. I jump up and head over to the bed where Ana is now laying. She looks exhausted. Dark bags are showing under her eyes, her cheeks are all purple and sunken in, her frame is too slight for her hospital gown, and she barely moves as I walk over to sit in the chair next to the bed. Without thinking about it, I take on of her clammy hands in both of mine and trace invisible circles across the top.

"Ana," One of the elderly nurses says. "While we're waiting for your X-ray results it would be a good idea for you to get a rape kit done." I look over at Ana as the words are said. Her eyes budge out of her skull and her mouth falls open to let out a gasp of air.

"What? No, no. I don't need one done." She says quickly. "I wasn't raped, I know I wasn't. I was awake the entire time. No drugs or anything. I mean he tried to rape me, but I-"

"Okay, Miss Steele." The nurse says to cut her off. "We don't have to perform a rape kit if you don't want one."

Relief runs over Ana's face. She relaxed further into the pillows behind her.

"I think now would be a good time for Ana to get some much needed rest. She's been through enough and we can look at her X-rays later on today." My mother pipes up from the corner of the room. She grabs a paper cup full of pills and places them next to a cup of water on Ana's bedside table.

"Just take these before you go to bed, dear." She offers us a slight smile before heading out the door with the rest of the nurses. She flicks off the main light switch and the only available light left is from the small floor lamp sitting next to the bed. The door softly shuts, leaving Ana and I to ourselves.

I sit there quietly not knowing what to do or what to say. I just continue to run my thumb over her hand.

This is the talk that we've both been waiting for. I know we need to talk, but I'd rather do it when we're both well rested and can think straight.

_Now or never, Grey._

"Ana," I turn my body so that I'm looking directly into her tired eyes. "I need you to know how sorry I am. I never wanted to hurt you like that. I never wanted you to leave that night. I wish I could have protected you or found you quicker, but I didn't even know where you were and I-" I need to slow down and collect my thoughts. I'm can't just throw everything at her at once like this.

"Wait," She says. "You've been looking for me?" Her eyebrows draw down in confusion. Her eyes hold so much hurt that I can practically feel it in my heart.

"Yes, Ana. God, I've been trying to find you since you left me that night." Exhaustion drips from my voice.

"Are you serious?" Tears are leaking out of the corners of her eyes now. I lean forward and use my free hand to softly wipe them away.

"Yes, Ana. I've wanted to tell you how sorry I am. I never wanted to hurt you that night. I never wanted to let you go like this. I just wanted some time to catch our breaths. I needed that time to come to terms with my feelings for you." I can't stop now. I just let it all out. Lay it all on the line and let her absorb it all.

"I love you, Ana." I whisper next to her face. We're so close now that I can feel and hear the tiny sob rise from her throat and make its way onto my lips.

"I love you so much, Ana. I didn't admit it to myself before, but you leaving made me realize that I can't live without you. I can't breathe without you, Ana. I haven't been able to sleep for weeks, because I've been worried sick about where you've been. Taylor's been running around like crazy just trying to find somebody that knew your name." I stop to take a deep breath.

"You love me?" She asks so quietly that I thought I heard her wrong.

I look at her. Even after all she's been through she still is beautiful. This woman literally fell into my office and took ahold of my heart. I've never felt this way about anyone before. If it were any other woman, or even one of my former submissive, I wouldn't be looking for them. I would just let them go. But, with Ana…Ana is the girl that I know I'm in love with. I just never allowed myself to notice it before.

"Yes," I simply say. "Yes, I do, Ana."

More tears rush out of her eyes and run onto my hand that's currently cradling one side of her face. I try my best to wipe them away, but she just continues to cry and sobs eventually take over.

_Did I do something wrong?_

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

Before I even know what's happening, Ana wraps her little arms around me and buries her face into my neck. Her hot tears soak into the cotton of my shirt, but I don't find myself to give a shit. I take the moment and wrap my arms around her tiny frame. Softly, though. I don't want to cause her anymore pain.

"Oh, Christian. I've missed you so much." She manages to get out in-between sobs. "I thought I was never going to see you again. I thought that nobody was out looking for me." She cries even harder.

"Shh, Ana. It's alright now. I'm here and we're together." I whisper into her ear.

After a couple of moments and the soft rubbing of my hands over her back, Ana finally calms down enough to speak more clearly.

"I just didn't know what to do, Christian. My life was flipped upside-down in a matter of seconds. I lost Kate and Jose as my friends, I got fired from my job, lost my apartment, my mother didn't care to hear from me, I didn't want Ray to know anything, and I knew that I couldn't go running back to you. So, I just left. I wanted to get away from it all. I hopped on a bus and ended up at that fucking motel. Nobody even knew I was gone." She finishes off in a whisper.

My heart throbs with her pain. She felt as if she didn't have another choice. That nobody was out looking for her. That she didn't matter to anyone, so why should she matter to herself. From here on out there shall be no more running. She will always know that she has a permanent place with me.

"Ana, you've been through more than enough for the time being. How about I let you get some sleep and we can pick up in the morning if you'd like" I ask. She does really look like she hasn't had a decent night sleep in months. It hurts to know that was my doing.

I lean back so I can get a better look at her face. Her eyes are wide and still swimming with water. Her lips begin to move quickly and her body begins to tremble slightly underneath my fingertips.

"Ana, what is it? What's wrong? Are you hurt?" I ask.

She shakes her head. "Don't leave me. Please don't leave me tonight. I know if you do then I'll have nightmares and I won't ever be able to sleep. _Please._" She's begging me to stay with her tonight. I feel so stupid. I should have known that she would be afraid of having graphic nightmares. After today, so would I.

"Okay, Ana. I'll stay, but we talk more in the morning, okay?" My heart melts at the smile that appears on her face. I haven't seen that smile in so long that it almost blinds me. She frantically nods and moves over on the bed as if to make room for me.

When she pats the space next to her I see that as an open invitation to be next to her.

"Are you sure?" I ask as I stand up to remove my shoes and throw them onto the ground.

"I'm sure." She replies back.

I peel back the cotton covers and ease my way into the tight hospital bed. Once I'm fully under, Ana makes her way underneath my arm and positions herself into my side with her head on my chest.

_God, this feels so right._

I take my arms and wrap them around her body. I move my face into her hair and inhale deeply.

"Is this alright? Are you comfortable?" I speak softly into her hair.

"I am now." She replies tiredly. I feel her heavy eyelids slam shut and her breathing become shallow with sleep.

I lean over and switch off the lamp next to the bed. The room is now covered in a quiet, peaceful darkness.

"I love you." I say into Ana's hair.

My eyelids also close and I'm drawn into a deep, dreamless sleep.


	10. Could it Get Any Worse?-Christian's POV

Christian's POV

"_Mr. Grey!"_

_Oh, good…it must be morning. _

I open my eyes to see that I'm still lying in the hospital bed. Ana is still snuggled in my arms and one side of my face is resting on top of her head. It's just like how we fell asleep last night, but only without the very angry nurse standing at the end of the mattress.

"I know, I know." I slur. My voice is thick with sleep and I have to shake my head a couple of times before I untangle myself from Ana and swing over to slip on my shoes.

"Miss Steele is not in any condition to be doing this kind of activity. She needs to rest properly and-"

"Oh, Susan." We both look over at the same time to see my mother walk into the room. "Let the two of them be. Christian is not going to hurt Ana by any means." As she says this I see her sneak a glance at me. The other nurse just gives a sigh and goes over to check Ana's vitals on the monitors behind her.

"Is there anything…wrong with her?" I quietly ask the nurse. Ana is still sleeping on the bed.

The nurse looks away from the monitors and back to me. "Her weight is an issue at the moment. She admitted that she can't remember the last time she ate and that has been causing some problems. She needs basic vitamins and nutrients. But, as far as I can tell everything else seems to be in check. I mean, she still has cuts and bruised, but that will all heal in the matter of days." She even offers me a slight smile.

I look over at Ana. Her face is relaxed with sleep and her arms are wound tightly against herself. My poor little Ana. She needs to eat. She's too thin. She's still as beautiful as ever, but her body is taking a toll on itself. The nurse walks away and my mother comes over to stand next to where I'm sitting on the foot of the bed.

"I'm assuming you two made up?" She asks softly, knowing that Ana is still asleep.

"We talked," I say. "But we still have a lot more talking and figuring stuff out to do."

My mother nods. "Just take it slow. And when was the last time you took a shower?"

I ponder her question for a moment before I run my hand over my stubble. "I honestly can't remember right now."

She sighs. "Go home, take a shower and get a change of clothes. Ana will still be sleeping by the time you get back."

"No." I automatically say. "I'm not going to leave her. I'll get Taylor to grab me some clothes and I'll just get cleaned up here."

So, that's what I do. I call Taylor over as Escala, I sent him home last night, and ask him for a change of clothes as well as my razor. Ana is still asleep by the time I'm all showered and freshly shaved. It's already noon and she's still sleeping. Hell, this is probably the most sleep that she's gotten in months. I make my way over to the bed and lay down next to her this time. Her eyelids flutter slightly and a pained moan comes out of her mouth. I'm instantly alarmed and start to reach for the nurse's button, but once she starts talking I freeze.

"Christian," She moans. "Stay with me…" Her voice trails off at the end. Her one arm comes out to reach for me across the bed and lands on my chest. I grab it and hold it in one of my hands. I've never wanted to kiss her pouty lips so badly. Would she care if I did? Maybe I should wait until she wakes up and we talk some more. I hold her hand and lean my face down toward hers. My lips press softly against her forehead, then her little nose, and then her bruised cheeks.

"I'm not leaving you." I say quietly into her ear.

As I drop her hand against the bedspread and begin to lean back, Ana is suddenly awake. Her body swings upright and she starts to grab at the air with her arms. "Christian!" She screams. Her wide eyes are panning the entire room looking for me. Her hair is all tangled over her shoulder and her hospital nightgown fell to slip a little ways past her collarbone.

"Ana, I'm right here." I reassure her. I slide over to sit a little closer and wrap my arms around her shoulders while pulling her gown up the rest of the way. "I just got up to shower and change real quick." I say.

Her body relaxes. She pulls out of my grasp and peers up at me through bright blue eyes. "Oh, okay. I thought you were gone. I thought I just dreamt it all."

I sigh. "No, I didn't leave you, baby." I smile down at her. She smiles back, but it's a sleepy smile. She moves back across the bed to grab the cup of water the nurse left along with the pills. With one swallow she downs the tablets and sets the cup back down.

"Are you in a lot of pain?" I'm worried that I must have done something last night to hurt her somehow. Maybe I squeezed her too hard or something.

She looks over at me and then starts to crawl her way back over the bed. I raise my eyebrows as she proceeds to swing her legs over mine and sit directly on my lap. Without thinking, I put one arm around her waist and use the other to rub soothing strokes up her outer arm.

"I'm perfect." She simply says. "And Christian," She seems hesitant to continue. "Thank you. For everything."

The sincerity in her voice makes my own crack. "You don't have to thank me for anything, baby."

The look that she gave me at that moment made everything up to this point worth it. She let out a low sigh, a content sigh at that, and shoved her head deep into my chest. "I'm ready to talk more now." She whispers. "That is, if you're ready."

"I'm always ready, Ana. But, we should get you checked out by the nurses first. I don't want you to hurt." I look down to see her response.

"Christian, I'm fine. A little bruised and battered, but other than that I'm okay now," she says thing, but yet all I can see are the dark spots that scatter all around her neck and lead further down underneath her clothing. Not to mention that half her face is swollen and tender. I can only imagine what damage her mental being is in right now.

_I'm going to kill the motherfuckers that did this. _

I was about to reject Ana's statement, when the door swings open and two beefy looking officers walk in. They're wearing matching blue uniforms and each carry a pad of paper in their hands.

"Miss Steele. I'm Officer Smith," The taller, darker looking one speaks first. "And this is Officer Randal." He motions to the smaller, blonde man. "We need to ask you a few questions if that's all right with you."

I stand up as the pair make their way over to where Ana is sitting on the bed. They can't be serious about asking her questions right now. She's too weak and emotionally wrecked to think about what happened only hours ago.

"I don't think that's a good idea, officers. Miss Steele is still recovering from her attack." I speak directly to them.

"Mr. Grey, we need to gather all the information we can about this attack." Randal says. "We've had issues with this gang of men before and we need to make sure nothing like this ever happens again." He looks over at Ana. She's scared. I can see that in her weary facial expression. She sits up to lean back against the headboard and pulls the white sheets up to her chin.

"I'll answer all of your questions." She says to the two Officers. "As long as Christian can stay in her with me while you do it."

She looks over at me with a pleading expression. What does she think I'll do? Leave so she can fend for herself? I walk over to the bed once again and sit at Ana's side. As a protector should be doing.

"Fair enough. We'd like to hear his side as well."

They come to stand in front of the bed. "Miss Steele, can you just start by telling us what happened. From beginning to end." They get their paper and pens ready.

"Well," Ana starts. "I left the city for a little bit. I just needed to get away from some…_emotional_ drama." She stares straight off into space and I swallow hard. "I ended up at a cheap motel somewhere outside of Seattle. I ran out of alcohol one day, so I was walking to the store to get some and that's when I found the guys that-" She stopped for a moment. I took her hand in mine and ran circles around it.

"Okay, Miss Steele." Smith says. "Can you describe where they took you?"

"You already have them anyway. Why don't you just go and interrogate them?" I snap out without even realizing it. I don't like them asking her these questions. She needs to heal from this.

"Believe me, Mr. Grey, we would if we could." What is that supposed to mean? "But, we only have two of our kidnappers in custody right now and they're refusing to talk no matter what we throw at them." I can feel the confusion spread all over my face.

_What?_

Ana chimes in. "Only two?" She whispers brokenly. "But there was three of them." She says. "Three men were running after me. Not just two. Where did the other one go?" She rushes out.

The two officers look at each other nervously. My gut clenches with the information they're about to spill out.

"Well, that's the thing," Smith takes over. "Apparently the third man got away somehow and his other two members aren't telling us where he is at all."

I feel as if I've been bashes upside the head.

_He got away? How could that have happened?_

Ana starts gasping next to me. She's clenching the sheets so tight that her knuckles turn the same shade of white. "He's still out there? What if he comes back for me? He could find me again. Oh, my God why me?" She looks over at me. "Christian, what if-"

"Unfortunately we have some even worse news," The officer says. "These three men are a part of a well-known gang in the surrounding area. They've caused our city so much destruction. We need to find the third man before he rounds up other members and tries to do something stupid."

_There's an entire gang full of these men. If three of them could do all of this to Ana, then just imagine what they all could do to her…_

Ana begins sobbing uncontrollably. Her face is soon flushed with tears and the salt water finds its way onto the bed. I reach over and pull her into my chest. She buries her face in my shoulder and just continues to cry harder. Once she starts shaking that's my cue to dismiss our company for the day.

"This is going to have to wait until another time." I tell the officers over  
Ana. I'm smoothing her hair away from her face just trying to give her as much comfort as I possibly can in this situation.

"We understand." They say. "Just let us know when the time is right. We'll be in touch." They open the door and walk out into the hallway.

Ana is still shaking like a leaf and water continues to flow from her eyes.

"Ana," I draw her name of softly. "You're all right. I'm here. I've got you." I whisper into her hair. "I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, okay?"

I feel her shake her head back and forth. "Christian, they'll find me again" She sobs. "I know they will." More sobs. "I don't have anywhere to go. No friends. No family. I just can't do it anymore." She murmurs into my shoulder.

"Oh, Ana, you couldn't be any more delirious." I say into her ear. "You have me, remember. You always have and you always will."

Her cries have slowed down to tiny sniffles. She loosens herself away and looks at me with her wide, bloodshot eyes.

"Ana, you stay with me until we can get this fucking mess settled and but behind us, all right?" I tell her straightforward. "Either you can stay with me at Escala, or I can buy you a new apartment and I move in. It's your choice, but wherever you go, Taylor and I will go. Understand?" I know I'm being a little too stern with her right now, but I love this woman too much to even put her in harms way again. I look at her and wait for an answer.

She gazes at me for a while before nodding her answer. "Okay," She whispers. "I'll move in with you."

Relief floods every part of my body. I pull her into a tight, but gentle hug. "Okay, then," I say into her neck. "We'll try to leave tomorrow morning."


	11. Going Home

_I love this man._ I think inside my head. I'm starting to believe that he's my personal angel send down from the heavens. He's just absolutely perfect in every way. We're still sitting on the bed after the two officers left. I'm laying against facing Christian who sits at the end with my feet in my lap giving me some sort of massage. I've just agreed to move in with Christian. There are people out there that can hurt me, now. Dangerously sick, twisted, people that put me here in the first place. And since I don't have anywhere to go in the first place, Christian's seems like a reasonable option, especially with Taylor staying there as well,

"And how are my two favorite people doing this morning?" Grace, Christian's mother, walks in holding a clipboard. "Ana, it seems like all of you vitals looks good." She says while flipping through some papers. "Are you felling any better?" Her soft, brown eyes looks up to meet mine.

I try to pull my feet away from Christian, but he just holds onto them even tighter. "Um, I feel fine actually." I say with a strong voice. "My face hurts a little bit, and my bruises hurt when something rubs against them, but other than that I feel okay." I'm telling her the truth.

"Ana, when was the last time you ate anything?" She glares at me accusingly.

I don't like this question. "Um…I think I had something…I can't remember." I put my head down in shame. I'm surprised Christian wasn't the first one to bring it up. I know I'm a little on the skinny side, but it's not that bad.

"Ana, you're BMI is extremely low for a woman of your age and height. You need to eat, honey." Grace says to me.

"I'll make her eat." Christian speaks for the first time. "Once we get out of here, I'll have Mrs. Jones make us both something to eat."

I just stare at him. Of course he's going to make me eat. He'll probably serve me up an elephant on a silver platter and hand me a fork.

"Well, you are free to leave whenever you want." Grace informs us. "But, if you feel any pain whatsoever, please come back or at least give me a call, okay?"

"Yes, mother." Christian says while rising to his feet. He comes over to the head of the bed and reaches his hands out to me. "Are you ready to go home, baby?" He asks me.

Am I ready? To go home with Christian? We still have so much more to talk about. I need to say things to him and I'm sure he needs to say things to me.

"Yeah, I'm ready." I tell him and reach my arms out. He pulls me up and grips the top of my arms to steady me. His eyes rake me from top to bottom. He presses his lips firmly together.

"Maybe we should get you a change of clothes before we go." He's referring to my very fashionable hospital gown that ties in the back.

"I don't have any of my clothes with me." I tell him.

"That's all right." He reaches into his pocket to pull out his shiny Blackberry. He presses one button and holds it up to his ear. "Taylor, can you please bring me up Miss Steele's bag. Thank you." He puts the phone away.

"What bag? I don't have a bag." I'm so confused. A soft knock comes from the closed door. Grace must have shut it when she left.

"Come in." Christian says loud enough for him to hear. Taylor walks into the room with a black duffel bag hanging in his hand.

"Miss Steele." He says while handing me the bag. "It's good to see that you're all right."

I take the bag and look to see what's inside. There seems to be a pair of dark gray sweatpants, a light blue hoodie, and I blush when I see a lacy pair of black panties and a matching bra. I'm so glad he thought about also packing a toothbrush and toothpaste as well as a hairbrush. My mouth feels so dry and dirty and I'm sure my hair resembles a rat's nest.

"Thank you so much, Taylor." I go up and give him a hug. He seems extremely hesitant at first, but then he softly pats me on the back.

"It's my pleasure, Miss Steele." He says and backs out of the hug. Christian comes up and puts one of his hands on my waist.

"Go ahead and get the R8 ready." He's talking to Taylor. "Once Ana changes we're out of here."

"Yes, Sir." Taylor walks out the door and shuts it behind him. I walk over to the tiny bathroom and set the bag on the toilet. I grab the tooth brush and tooth paste and start to run the sink water so I can brush my teeth.

"Do you need any help?" I hear Christian say from the frame of the door.

"I think I can manage." I say with suds running from my mouth.

"Alright. I'll be out here waiting when you're done." He shuts the door and leaves me alone so I can change.

I quickly change my clothes and hang the gown up on a hook on the back of the door. I glance in the mirror as I start brushing the tangles on top of my head. I feel so much better now that I'm in normal people clothes.

I step out of the bathroom and walk out to see Christian sitting on the bed with his hands folded between his knees. He looks up as I go over to stand next to him. "Ready?" I nod and take a hold of the hand he reaches out to me. We make our way out the door and into the hallway. A couple of nurses walking by glance from Christian to me. They probably think I'm some kind of mental patient thinking I'm capable of being seen with a God.

We make our way to the main lobby, sign out, and head out the sliding doors. It's pouring down rain. People are rushing around holding umbrellas and cars drive by splashing through puddles. Outside the Audi is waiting with the other SUV behind it. Taylor is sitting in the front seat and jumps out to hand Christian the keys to the R8. He opens the passenger door and gestures me in with his arm. "After you." I climb in and he shuts the door and walks over to the driver's side. The engine roars to life and vibrated the soft leather seats. He looks over and offers me a small smile before veering off into traffic and toward Escala.

"You can take a shower at the apartment if you want." He says. "I'm sure you want to wash off a couple months of filth."

I nod. Even though I changed my clothes, I still feel fifthly with everything that's happened. "I think a shower would be a good idea." I reply back.

I lean my head back against the cold, glass window and just stare at his as he continues to drive at an excessive speed with Taylor following behind us. After a couple more minutes the car pulls up into the massive garage and is turned off.

A mix of feelings run through my mind. The last time I was here was when Christian used the belt on me. That incident caused me to run away like a child and never consider my choice until it was too late. It's my home now, though. I need to get over the past so I can move on. I don't believe that Christian would do anything to hurt me. He's the one that threw me the life raft for God's sake.

My door opens and Christian puts an arm around my waist and leads me to the elevator to take us up to the penthouse. We walk in with Taylor behind us and head straight to the master bedroom with the connecting bathroom.

Christian walks straight in and switches on the lights and draws the curtains that cover the massive windows shut. "I'll go grab your stuff so you can take a shower and get situated." He walks out of the room, leaving me all confused, and returns with two more duffel bags. "This one here," He says while placing the navy bag on the king size bed. "is for day wear. And the black one is full of pajamas and bathing products." He walks up to me. I'm standing completely still with my arms crossed in front of me. I feel cold for some reason. Almost uncomfortable as if I don't belong here.

I feel his hands softly grasp each of my elbows. He bends down so he can look straight into my eyes. "Ana, are you alright? Is something wrong?" His forehead is creased with concern and his mouth turns downward.

I swallow thickly and answer him in a small voice. "Yeah. I'm fine." I lie. "I just want to take a shower and eat something." Well, the showering part isn't a lie.

"Okay. You go take a shower and I'll get Gail to make us something to eat. We can sit in the media room and talk if you would like, or we can just go to bed or do something else." He released me and head over to the bedroom door. "I'll be in my office if you need me." I offer a small nod and he smiles a walks out.

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly.

_I don't deserve him._

I grab the black bag from the bed and mechanically walk over the bathroom door and lock it behind me. I turn on the shower water to let the steam take over the tiles space. I start stripping off my clothes and make the mistake at looking at my naked body in the full length mirror. I gasp in shock.

I'm horrified at what I see. Dead looking blue eyes, cracked lips, and blotchy skin are reflected back at me. That's not the worst thing though. Across my face, from my lips to my ear, is a giant purple/yellow mark. It's in the shape of a handprint. My eyes scan a little lover and my heart thumps at what I find. Bruises. Dark, purple blotches completely cover my neck and my chest. I lean towards the mirror and use my fingers to gently probe one on the side of my neck. It throbs painfully. They're not giant marks either. They're about the size of a quarter.

_Teeth marks._ My memory tells me.

The memory of the black-eyed man causes moisture to rush into my eyes. I notice how small my body looks as well. My collar bone is too defined, my breasts are covered in bite marks, all of my ribs are countable, and my hipbones protrude out in a sickening way.

_How does Christian even want to be seen with this?_

I can't hold myself up anymore. The pain in my chest is too great. The moisture in my eyes blurs my vision as I find myself sinking toward the bathroom floor. I throw my head against the massive bathtub and let out a sound only an animal would make.

_I'm ruined._ I say in my head. Christian will never want me as long as I'm looking like this. He could have any woman he wanted and yet he says that he loves _me?_ The broken, crazy girlfriend that he had to go save because she's so stupid? I cry and cry until I begin struggling to find my breath.

_Those men took everything away from me._ They took my dignity, my confidence, and basically my entire way of life. Nobody is going to want poor, little Anastasia anymore. My mind goes into overdrive and as I close my eyes flashes of the previous day flow through my mind:

_Running through the streets in my crappy shoes, rough hands dragging me towards a dark basement, waking up tied to a chair, a man slapping my face, hands rubbing all over me, sharp stings vibrating through my body, the feeling that life was going to end any minute…._ I see it all for a second time.

I can't do this anymore. My life is over. I've been through too much. My throat feels like I've just swallowed a couple of knives and my face is on fire and uncomfortably wet with half dry and half wet tears. My sobs get louder and louder and nothing can be done to stop them.

I just sit there naked on Christian's bathroom floor with no motivation to move whatsoever. Not even when I hear pounding next to me and a boisterous voice screaming my name through the door.


	12. Shower Time-Christian's POV

Christian's POV

I shut the door and left Ana alone to take a shower. I didn't want to leave her all by herself, but I figured after all she's been through maybe a little alone time would be good for her. I walk from the bathroom door and over to the bed. I take some fleece pajama pants and a simple gray t-shirt from Ana's duffel bag and lay it out over the covers so she has it when she gets out. Once she gets settled in further I'll take her shopping so she can have her own things to put in our bedroom.

While she's getting all cleaned up, I decide to go talk to Taylor. I walk a little ways down the hallway until I find him in my office. I open the glass door and see that he's talking on the phone. "Yes, Sir. Alright, I will be sure to let him know." He sets the phone down and looks up at me. I give him a questionable look and he explains. "Sir that was Officer Smith from the Seattle Police Department. He would like to know if Miss Steele is ready for questioning." I take a deep breath. I understand that they're just trying to do their jobs, but she hasn't had any time at all to gather her thoughts and feelings.

"I don't think so." I shake my head. "She's still a bit of a wreck."

He nods in understanding. "It'll take time, Sir."

"Have you heard anything about the gang or the man that's escaped?" I can't even begin to think about more of these men after Ana. That's one of the reasons why I asked her to stay here with me. This way I'm able to properly protect her, make sure she heals correctly, and because she apparently has nowhere else to go. She says that she's basically cut everyone out of her life. Well, we'll have to do something about that.

"No, Sir. I haven't hear anything so far. Officer Smith says that he will keep us informed once he begins receiving information." Taylor says.

I take a deep breath and lean my back up against the office door when all of a sudden I hear a noise coming from the other side. It starts off soft, but then gets louder and louder until it just sounds like a long wail.

_Ana._

I swing open the door and let it bang against the wall. The sobbing gets louder and louder as I run down the hallway and stop in front of the master bathroom. It's definitely coming from Ana. I start pounding on the door with a closed fist. "Ana!" I scream. "Ana, what's wrong? What happened?" I continue to hit the door. The only answer I get is more loud sobs. "Ana, let me in." I continue to say with my hand on the door.

"Go…away…" I hear her soft voice blubbering with tears thick in her voice. She honestly believes that I would walk away right now?

"Ana, please, baby, just open the door and let me help you." I'm begging now. All I hear in response is more sobbing and the water from the shower pouring into the empty tub. I take a deep breath and lean my head against the door praying that she'll let me in sometime soon.

"Mr. Grey," I hear Taylor say behind me. I slowly turn around to see him standing there with a set of keys in his hands. "I have a set of keys to all the doors in the apartment." He hands the set out to me with one in particular standing up. I take the set and unlock the door. Once I'm inside the bathroom I immediately search for Ana. There is steam everywhere. The mirrors are covered in it and water pellets are starting to drip down the walls.

_The mirrors!_ _Crap!_ How could I be so careless? She saw herself in the mirror and of course she wouldn't like what she saw. I make my way further into the bathroom and find a curled up Ana lying against the bathtub. He arms are wrapped tightly around her knees and draw them against her naked chest. She continues to sob as I walk over and kneel down beside her.

"Ana," I say as if I was talking to a child. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking. It'll be alright now." I hesitantly raise my hand and place it on her shoulder. She begins to bawl even more. Her blubbering turns to full on wailing and she tightens her body into a ball even more. What am I supposed to do in this situation? The last thing I want to do is scare her, but she clearly needs to me helped. "Sweetheart, what can I do to help?" I ask her. While keeping on hand on her shoulder, I gently take my other hand and manage to take the side of her face and turn it towards mine. Her eyes are wide and tears continue to run onto her cheeks and drip off her chin. She stares up at me with a pained expression that sends ice through my heart. Her cries have quieted a little bit, but her body still shakes underneath my hands. "Talk to me, baby." I softly stroke her cheek.

She looks at me for a moment before speaking. "I saw myself," She says softly as more tears stream down her face. "And then I started to see everything again." She bows her head and retreats back into her body. This is completely my fault. If I wouldn't have left her alone then she wouldn't be going through this right now. I figured that this would happen at some point, but I wasn't prepared for it to be so soon.

"Ana, you need to trust me when I say that you're safe now. You're here with me and nobody will hurt you again." I try my best to get the words through her head. She still shakes her head in protest.

"Christian, I can't even take a shower by myself." She stops crying, but her face is still streaked with her tears.

"Well," I don't know if this is the best thing to say right now, but I'm going to say it anyway. "Would you like me to help you?" At first I expect her to cower away in disgust and tell me to go away, but to my surprise she silently nods her head. "Okay then. Let me help you up and I'll turn on the bath. Is that alright? I'll help you from the outside of the tub." As much as I would love to, I can't jump into the shower naked with her. She nods her head and straighten her legs out in front of her. I stand up and go to pick her up from the floor. I grasp her underneath her arms and lift her up onto her feet. When I know that she can hold herself up, I go over to the shower and switch the water so it begins to fill up the tub. Ana is still standing where I left her with her arms crossed over her chest. She follows my every move as I walk back over and place my hand on her lower back. She follows me as we move over to the tub. "You don't have to be embarrassed around me, Ana." I say into her ear. "I only want to take care of you." I take both of my hands and pull her arms away from her chest. She lets them fall away from her body and she takes a step into the tub. I hold onto one of her hands so she doesn't slip and fall in the full tub of warm water.

She slips into the water so that only her head is visible on the surface. "There," I say to her. "Now, doesn't that feel so much better?" I offer her a smile as I grab a bottle of shampoo from the rack on the wall. I pour a generous amount onto the palm of my hand and run it through her brown locks until they're covered in white suds. As I'm massaging the soap through her scalp, Ana leans her head back with her eyes closed and give out a quiet sigh. Once her hair is washed with the shampoo, I take the hose from the shower and rinse off all the bubble while making sure none get in her eyes. Her hair now feels silky soft and washed to perfection.

"Alright, baby, go ahead and stand up for me." I stand up and go to reach for her hand to help her stand as well. She seems extremely timid as she puts her wet hand in mine and raises up on her wobbly legs. Once she's up her arms go to wrap around her body like a snake. She doesn't want me to see her this way. We're both standing now. I stand outside the tub still in my jeans and t-shirt while she's inside fully naked. I need her to believe me. I need her to know one hundred percent that I am in love with her no matter what happened. I step a little closer to the edge and wrap my arms around her naked shoulders and nuzzle my mouth next to her ear. "No matter what happens, I will always see you as my beautiful, strong Ana." I say. "You don't need to hide anything from me. I'll love you no matter what." She sags against me. Her head lands on my shoulder between my neck and her lips press into my throat. I bend down real quick to grab some body wash and a soft puffy looking thing to wash her with. I pour some on the puffball and lather it against her skin. She stands perfectly still as I continue to was her entire body.

I run the wash from her collar bone all the way down to her feet. When I reach any sort of bruise or scratch mark, I lightly kiss each and every one of them hoping to take some of her pain away. She lets me wash her until I notice her shivering from being exposed to the cooler air for a little while. "Are you ready to get dried off and get dressed?" I ask as I wash the suds from her body off. She nods a couple of times before using my shoulders for support as she climbs out of the tub. I take the giant, cotton towel from the towel heater and proceed to wrap it around her body twice. She resembles a child as I open the bathroom door and we walk out into the master bedroom where her pajamas are lying on the bed.

"Is this alright with you?" I ask and hold up her clothes.

"Yeah, as long as it's soft and cozy." She says with a little smile that completely warms my chest.

I walk over to where she's standing and unwrap the towel from her body and use it to gently dry her off. When she's all dry I help her put on her clothes and grab a brush from the vanity. I ask her to sit on the bed as I brush her wet hair down her back and almost to her waist. I'm sitting behind her and take the opportunity to take her into my arms and pull her against my chest. "Ana, this is going to take some time." I tell her the truth. "You're going to have some good days and some bad days, but just know that I will _always_ be here for you no matter what. I love you, Ana. Don't be afraid to tell me if something is bothering you, alright?" I kiss her temple and lean to the side to catch her response. She just gives me that same blank look until she swiftly turns around in my lap and throws her arms around my neck.

"Just don't let me be alone anymore, Christian." She whispers into the side of my neck. I catch the double meaning behind her statement.

"I won't, Ana. I won't." I promise her and rub her back softly. We sit like that for a couple of minutes until Ana's stomach begins to make itself known. "Why don't you say we go grab something to eat and watch a movie?" I hope she understands now that I'm here for her until the very end and beyond. There isn't a thing in the world that I wouldn't do for this woman.

"I'd like that." She smiles once again. We stand up and head out into the kitchen to find ourselves some much needed dinner.


	13. Heart to Heart-Christian's POV

Christian's POV

"What would you like to eat, baby?" I make my way into the kitchen and start scanning through cabinets. I gave Mrs. Jones the night off so I could be the one to properly take care of  
Ana, even though my culinary skills are not the sharpest. Ana sits on a bar stool and watches me as I wait for her answer.

"I'm not sure what I'm hungry for." She says with a frown. "Something warm sounds good though." Okay, she wants warm. I can work with that.

I go over to the fridge are search all of the shelves until I find a ceramic bowl with foil covering the top. "How about some macaroni and cheese?" I spin around and hold the bowl up to show her. She looks at it and nods her head up and down with a smile on her beautiful face. "Well, the mac and cheese it is." I take the bowl and place it into the microwave and set the timer. While the food is heating up, I go over and take two glasses out of the top cabinet over the stove. "What do you want to drink?" I look over at her.

"Um, do you have any soda?" Her answer surprises me. She was always a wine person, but I guess under the circumstances soda is a good idea.

"I think Gail went out and picked some up the other day. She and Taylor drink the stuff like crazy. I reach into the fridge and pull out two bottles of Sprite and set them in front of Ana. I take the glasses, fill them with ice, and pour the soda into each glass. I set those down and grab the bowl from the microwave. "Do you want to eat at the counter or on the couch in the media room?" I'm hoping she says the couch. That way I know she's comfortable and we could talk some with a fire or the television on in the background.

"Let's go eat on the couch." She hops down from the stool and grabs her drink. I smile and go to grab two spoons from the silver wear drawer as well as the food and my own drink. We walk side by side and through the double doors into the media room. I close the doors behind us with my foot and switch on the low lights with my shoulder. Ana makes herself at home and gets situated on the soft, white leather couch in front of the massive fireplace and flat screen television. I press the button on the wall and a roaring fire grows in front of our eyes. The dim lights and the warm, orange fire provide the room with a very intimate setting.

"Cozy?" I ask as she scoots over and allows me to sit right next to her. She nods and folds her legs Indian style. I sit down, slip my shoes off with my feet, and hold the bowl in between us with the spoons sticking out. I take the first bite before Ana take the spoon and begins to dig in.

"This is good." She says with a mouthful. "Really good." I can't help but laugh lightly. She looks so much like a child at this moment.

"Why thank you. I made it myself." I take another spoonful. She smiles and swallows what's in her mouth and goes to fill her spoon again. She's eating as if she's a starving animal. I didn't want to bring it up so soon, but she really has lost a great deal of weight. "Ana, when was the last time you ate a full meal?" I ask softly. I don't want to drill into her right away, but she needs to know what she's doing to her body.

Right when she hears the question she drops her spoon in the bowl and looks down at the folded hands in her lap. "I don't remember my last actual meal." She whispers shamefully. "The last thing I remember eating was a can of beans that a guy in the hotel gave me." She still looks down into her hands. It angers me that she can't even remember when she last hand a full meal that wasn't a can of beans.

"Do you have any idea how much that frustrates me?" My voice sounds a little stronger that I intended. "Ana, you need to eat. You're practically withering away to nothing." I can feel myself getting a little flustered. I run my hands through my hair a couple times in order to calm myself.

"Well what did you want me to do?" She snaps at me. Her hands fly up from her lap and into the space above her. She looks at me with sharp eyes. "I didn't have any fucking money. What was I supposed to do? Sell my body or something?" I hear myself growl at the thought. "Eating wasn't really my first priority, Christian. All I felt like doing was curling up into a ball and dying, but I couldn't even do that right! I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep, I could barely _fucking move _because I was to fucking depressed with the thoughts of you!" She's still screaming, but there are tears filling up in her eyes. "I was lost and I didn't have anybody to help me. I couldn't even help myself even when it came to eating." Her voice quivers near the end. Her lips begin to tremble and she looks away from me. All traces of anger evaporates from my body.

"Ana," I say after she takes a few deep breathes. I place the bowl onto the glass table next to the couch and lean forward towards her. "Do you know how much it hurts me to see you in this much pain? To know how much hurt you've had to endure because of me?" She's still not meeting my eyes, but I hear her whimper slightly as she listens to my words. "That night you left, I _knew_ that I lost you. I knew that what I did was terribly wrong in every way, but it opened my eyes, Ana. I tried looking for you. I wasn't going to stop until I found you, but what I found broke my fucking heart." I feel my throat tightening up with emotion. My eyes burn as I look into hers. "What happened to you, baby? Where did my feisty girl go, huh?" I take my hand and rub it up and down her arm. She begins to shake her head back and forth while looking at the opposite wall. The tears that filled up her eyes begin to leak down her cheeks and into the corners of her mouth.

"I felt completely alone." Her voice breaks and a flood of tears rush out. She takes her hands and frantically wipes at her face. "After I left you I went back to my apartment and felt like a kicked puppy. I didn't want to see or hear anyone that wasn't you." She turns her head and looks into my eyes. "I just sat curled up on the couch and looked at my phone hoping that you would call or text or freaking e-mail me."

I swallow a lump before answering her. "I wanted us to breathe for a minute." I say. "I just wanted time to think about everything that happened. I wanted to run to you so badly, but I knew that you needed time to think as well." She remains silent and we continue to stare at each other. Her blue eyes to my gray ones. "Anastasia," I use her full name so she knows I'm serious. "What led you to that place?" I need to know what hell she's been through in the past couple months so we can eventually move on from it together as a couple.

She take a long, deep breath before speaking. "I lost everything, Christian. I lost you, my friends, my home, my job, my car, and just about everything else. I went into a depression after I left you. Kate and Jose tried to help me, but I got so mad one day and I just snapped." Tears once again fill her eyes. "I got so pissed off at Kate and Jose for trying to set me up with other guys and trying to act like they understood. So, one night I just snapped at them and said some horrible things. I didn't realize what I did until Kate was packing up to leave and Jose stopped talking to me." She took another breather and continued. "At work I didn't want to do anything. I didn't want to talk to anybody and I definitely didn't want to deal with my boss trying to cheer me up. On my last day he called me into his office and told me that I was fired for not doing my job correctly. Once I lost my job, I didn't make any money to pay for my apartment, so I lost that, too. The only money that I really had was the money Taylor got for my car. That's what I used to pay for the hotel and other small items."

"Why didn't you come to me, Ana? You should have known that I would have helped you in every way possible." I'm trying to understand her perspective, but at the same time I can't ever imagine it for myself.

"At the time I thought that you were done with me. You didn't try to speak to me or anything." Her voice got smaller and smaller. "I thought you may have found another submissive or something." The shock I felt took my breath away. I opened my mouth to tell her what a crazy thought that way, but she cut me off. "I had to leave and go somewhere else.  
I didn't care where as long as I was away from all of this." She waves her hand around to indicate all of Seattle. "So, I hoped on a bus on day and just went into a hotel and called it home." She finishes the story as if it were the ending to a fairytale.

"What about Ray, Ana? Your mother? Did you ever try and contact any of your family?" I say.

"I didn't want them to worry about me. I didn't want to interrupt their lives just because I acted like a child and ran away from home. They would have made a huge deal about it and called the police or something."

She still doesn't understand. She has people in her life that would do absolutely anything for her. All she had to do was call and ask. I face forward and place my elbows on my knees and my face into my hands. This woman can be so fucking stubborn sometimes. The Ana that I knew would never have let herself get this low. She would have called me and demanded my help before she ever got on a bus to go live in some stingy motel.

"I'm sorry, Christian." I hear her whisper into the room. "I'll leave if you want me to. I'll understand."

Her broken words cut straight through me. I spin around quickly and grab her face with my hands. "Ana, you listen to me," I gaze right into her eyes and growl out the words. "You will not be going anywhere unless it's with me, do you understand? I don't ever want you to leave so don't even bother bringing it back up. You. Stay. With. Me. Got it?" I'm scaring her. I know I'm scaring her. Her eyes are wide with terror and she starts shaking with dry sobs.

"Christian, please, you're hurting me." She chokes out the words and tries to pull my hands off her face.

_Shit, the bruises. _How could I be so fucking stupid? I yank my hands back and place them on the couch. She touches her bruised cheek with her own hand and winces at the pain.

"Ana, I didn't mean to-" All my anger has left and all that's left is pain. I absolutely ache for this girl. Her cries cut off what I was about to say. She bows over her crossed legs and starts sobbing once again. My heart feels like it just dropped into my stomach. I try to rub soothing circles on her back, but she just keeps shaking. "Ana, I'm so sorry. I didn't want to-"

"They hurt me so bad…" She says in between her shaking. Her body is still hunched over and I'm still rubbing her back. "I didn't do anything wrong…" She manages to get out. "He just kept touching me over and over…" She lets out a long wail followed by a waterfall of tears. She's talking about the men take kidnapped her and almost raped her. That's what all this is about.

I take it as my cue to take over. I pick her up by her tiny, little waist and place her right on my lap. Her face finds its way into my shoulder and her arms wrap around my neck. I run my fingers through her hair and down her back. "Shh…baby. I'm here now." I try to calm her down. I bury my nose into her hair. She's shaking like a leaf, but still manages to tighten her grip around me. At this time, I don't really know how to feel. I'm aching for her but at the same time all I want to do is punch something. Once I find those fuckers, I'm going to kill the, for what they put Ana through.

"I thought I would never see you again…" Ana's voice quivers into my neck. She pulls back and looks at my face. I can see how red her own face it. It's completely streaked with tears and her eyes are all swollen. She takes her hands away and wipes her face. "I didn't want it, Christian. Please believe me when I say I didn't want another man to touch me." Her words confuse as well as piss me off. Why in the hell would she say a thing like that?

"Ana, I know you didn't want it, baby." I pull her back into my arms and stroke her hair. "What they did to you was terrible. Nobody should have to go through that." I try to make my voice sound as sweet as possible. I just really want to punch something. "I promise that you're safe. I won't let anything like that happen to you ever again." I mean every word. I lean my head back so I can look down at her. Her eyes are still wet with unshed tears. "Do you hear me, Ana? I will not let anything happen to you." I speak slowly so she can soak in my words. Her head moves up and down while her eyes stay glued to my face. "Good. Now, how about we relax a little?" I take her in my arms as I slide down onto the couch so that my head rests on a pillow behind me and my feet are at the other end. Ana is lying between me and the back of the couch. Her head has nowhere to go besides my chest, so that's where it ends up. I reach for the remote on the coffee table and switch on the television to some dramatic movie. I wrap both of my arms around Ana and I feel her breath hitch slightly. "It's alright, sweetheart. Just relax." She breathes out a sigh and places her hand on my chest right next to my heart.

_Pure bliss. _

I kiss her hair as her eyes face the TV and follow the movements on the screen. I don't even bother with following the plot or the dialogue. All I see and hear is the girl lying next to me. Her breathing is so quiet and steady that I almost think she isn't breathing at all until I feel her grip my shirt every now and then. I just lie back and stroke my fingers from her neck all the way down to her spine. Her body seems to sink into me further every time I complete a round. So I keep doing it until I lose track of time.

The end credits roll across the screen, which tells me that the movie is over. I've been so caught up in watching Ana that I completely forget the television was on it the first place. I gently sit up and notice that Ana isn't moving at all. "Ana, are you awake?" I place my hand on her shoulder and turn lean down to get a better look. Her eyes are sealed shut and moving quickly back and forth to show that she is dreaming. Her lips are moving, but there's no sound coming out of them. Even with all the extra movement, her face seems oddly peaceful. I wonder what she's dreaming about tonight. I scoop her up into my arms and carry her bridal style to the master bedroom. She makes tiny murmuring sounds as I place her onto the massive bed and drape the sheets around her. I change my jeans into a pair of sweatpants, climb in on my side and cuddle up next to her. My arms are around her in a second and she turns towards me and entangles our legs together underneath the covers. Her face once again finds its way into my neck and her hand rests on my chest. I reach over and turn the lights off, making the entire room go completely black. I didn't know how exhausted I was until this very moment. I sag further into the pillows and tighten my arms around Ana. My eyes feel like bricks. I let them close and place my head on top of hers.

"I love you, Ana." I whisper into the darkness. I drift off into a peaceful sleep with the only woman I love trapped in my arms.


	14. Going Out

Bright sunlight greets me as I open my eyes. I'm lying on my side with my head on a pillow. My last memory was watching a movie with my head on Christian's chest. I guess he must have brought me back to his bed after I fell asleep. I stretch a little and try to turn over, but both of his arms are locked around me and his legs practically tie mine to his. I manage to wiggly my way around so that I'm now facing Christian. He's still fast asleep. His eyes are sealed shut and his breathe is soft against my face. I can't help but softly stoke his delicate looking features. I run my fingers from his straight nose, across his cheekbones, and trace his perfectly shaped eyebrows. He sucks in a deep breath and his eyelids snap open to reveal his beautiful, stormy eyes.

"Well good morning." He yawns loudly and stretches his large, lean body like a cat. He leans down and presses his lips against my forehead and then each of my cheeks and then lets them hover above my lips. He's asking for my permission to kiss me. Should I let him? After everything he's done for me all I want to do is show him how grateful I am that he's here.

I tilt my head up and allow our lips to press together softly at first. Christian places one of his hands on the back of my neck and opens his mouth over mine. I remember this. I remember all of this. He needs to be in control no matter what the situation. I pry my own lips apart and allow him to deepen the kiss. His mouth completely covers mine and his warm, slippery tongue traces the bottom of my lips. The feeling sends sharp butterflies flying through my stomach. I loose complete control of myself and grab his hair into my fists and smash his lips closer to mine. His tongue intertwines with my own and we moan in unison at the reunion. His mouth is hard against lips, but yet tender at the same time. Our mouths continue to move together even as Christian leans over me and presses me back into the mattress. This scares me a little. I lose myself in the kissing, but I think that's all I'm ready for right now. I place my hands on his shoulders and he breaks the kiss immediately. He rears his head back a bit and looks down at me with bright eyes and swollen lips. His grin is so big that I can't help but laugh at his expression which makes him smile even wider.

"Ahh, Ana. How I've missed that sound." He quickly drops his lips back down so he can place a quick peck right on mine. He lays his forehead on my shoulder and takes a deep breathe. "This is how I want to wake up every morning." He whispers and plants a kiss before rolling back over on his side. "You hungry?" He looks at me with loving eyes. When he mentions the idea of food my stomach begins to rumble loudly.

He chuckles and stands up. "I'll take that as a yes. Come. I believe that Mrs. Jones made breakfast for us this morning." He walks around to my side and takes my hand in his so he can pull me up. He stands in front of me with one hand holding mine and the other on my hip. Just standing next to him gives me butterflies. Why do I all of a sudden feel naked to the soul?

"You're blushing." I can hear the smile in his voice. My face feels burning hot and I drop my head. His fingers go under my chin and lift my head so I'm staring at him. "Hey," He looks serious now. "I love it when you blush." He gives me a cheeky smile which only makes me blush harder. He bends down and pecks me on the cheek and once more on my lips. "Now, let's go grab something to eat." He turns around and pulls me by my hand towards the kitchen.

As we exit the bedroom a wave of delicious smells invades my nostrils. We walk into the kitchen hand in hand to find Mrs. Jones standing at the stove making what appears to be scrambled eggs. A bunch of other plates piled high with food are scattered around the counter area. She turns around once she hears Christian open the fridge to get us some orange juice.

"Ana, darling!" She drops what she's doing and runs up to give me an awkward hug since Christian still refuses to let go of my hand. "It's so lovely to see you again." She pats my shoulder and walks back over to the stove. "Breakfast is just about finished."

"Thank you, Gail. Ana and I will make our own plates." Christian takes me over to the bar and sets me down at one of the stools. He takes two glasses out of the cabinet and pours each of us a glass of juice.

"Very well, Mr. Grey." She wipes her hands on her white apron and leaves the kitchen.

As I'm sitting at the counter, Christian is making himself useful by running around making our plates. I watch as his tall, lean, masculine frame move swiftly. Even in his plain, cotton t-shirt, and cotton sweatpants that hang over his hips, he looks absolutely divine. I know I probably shouldn't be thinking this way right now, but the way he makes me feel just sends shivers through my entire body.

"Like what you see?" His voice snaps me back to reality. I can only imagine how red my face looks right now. I drop my head into my hands and he chuckles. "Here. I just put a pile of everything on yours." He says and places my plate in front of me. My eyes almost jump out of my head when I see how much food he expects me to eat. There's bacon on top of scrambled eggs and two biscuits covered in jelly sitting next to two pancakes the size of my face.

"Christian, holy cow!" I say and look up from my plate. "This is a lot of food for one girl to eat!"

He slides the other stool next to me out and sits down to eat his breakfast which is half the size of mine.

"Yes, Anastasia, it is a lot of food, but I want you to at least eat half of it." He says with a straight face. I don't question what his says and pick up a piece of bacon. I've never been much of a bacon person, but this stuff is good. The eggs are cooked to perfection and the pancakes are so soft and fluffy. I see Christian glance over at me every now and then to make sure I'm eating. I give him what he wants and look at him as I chew a huge mouthful of eggs. He can't help but smile at me.

"What would you like to do today?" He swallows his food and takes a drink.

"Uh, I'm not sure. What day is it anyway?" I ask. I've lost all track of time since I've been with him. Even at the motel I had to ask people the time and date.

"Today is Tuesday." He says and turns on the stool to face me. His entire plate is licked clean and his glass is now empty.

"Tuesday? Don't you have to work or rule the world or something like that?"

He looks at me and shakes his head. "I'm the boss, remember, Ana? I can take off as much time as I want." He grins and places his hands on my shoulders. "I want to take you out shopping." He says. "You need clothes and other things if you're going to stay here." He has a point. I don't really have much here right now. The only clothing I have is the stuff Taylor bought for me and that's only enough for two days tops. I'd love to go shopping, but I know how I look. People will stare at me standing next to him with all of my bruises and my skeletal figure and dingy looking hair. No. I can't go out in public with him.

"Christian," I says his name slowly. "I don't think I look the part right now. Maybe in a couple months or something when everything heals and I can gain some weight or dye my hair or even if my-"

"Hey, hey, Ana." He speaks quickly and cuts my rambling off. "You absolutely look gorgeous." He says seriously and places his hand on my cheek. The bruise doesn't hurt as bad anymore, but I know it's still a deep purple color. His thumb strums across my cheekbone and makes its way down to my neck where the rest of the bruises are. "Come with me. I have just the thing to make you feel better." He take my hand and pulls me back into the master bathroom. He pulls open a drawer underneath the marbled sink and pulls out a ting glass bottle. He's holding up a bottle of foundation. The very expensive kind that women in suits sell to other women dumb enough to walk through the door in the first place.

"Make-up? Really, Christian? And here I though your face was naturally that smooth." I crack a joke and smile to myself.

He just stand there and continues to hold the bottle while trying to keep a solid face. "Ha. Ha. Very funny." He sets the bottle down on the counter and comes to stand in front of me. "I figured something like this would happen. So, I went to one of the best make-up stores in Seattle and had the lady pick out everything." He looks a little uncomfortable talking about this. "I'll be honest, when it comes to woman products, I'm a little bit lost." He laughs lightly.

I smile up at him. "Well thank you." I say and walk over to grab the bottle. I look up into the mirror and try to hold in my breakfast that threatens to come back up. The bruises on my neck are still terribly dark and the large one on my face is blue with a slightly yellow ring around it. I touch where it begins by my mouth and trace it up to my temple. It throbs a little, but it's not as bad as it was before. Christian's arms wrap around me from behind and I look at him through the reflection. His chin rests on my shoulder and he gazes into my eyes. "You are so beautiful, Ana." He turns his head and runs his nose up and down my neck before he places a wet, opened mouth kiss next to my ear. I shiver in his arms and he laughs in my ear. "Let me do it." He takes the bottle from my hands, opens the cap, and pours a little of the liquid in his palm. He dabs a little onto his finger and touches it to my cheekbone. With delicate fingers, he smears more all over my face to make it even.

"There we go." He says softly and turns my face towards the mirror. I'm shocked at what I see. He wasn't kidding when he said it was the best. My entire face looks absolutely flawless. It's as if somebody came in and sucked the bruise right out. I turn my face from side to side to see if what I'm seeing is real. There's not even a trace of it left.

"Wow. This stuff is amazing. It must have cost an arm and a leg." I say and turn to look back at Christian.

"Yes, it is. You're always beautiful, Ana, but if this helps you at all then it's completely worth it." He pecks me on my forehead and goes to pour more in his hand. "Now, let's do your neck so we can get dressed and out of here." He goes to work on my neck and once he's done I take another look in the mirror. Nothing. Not even a splash of discoloration.

"Okay, I'm amazed." I say and stand on my toes so I can kiss him.

"I'm glad you're happy. Now would you like to go shopping?" He leads me out of the bathroom and into the master bedroom.

"Christian, I don't have any clothes to go out in." I glance around the room looking for something that isn't here. The duffel bag that Taylor packed is lying on the floor with my dirty clothes thrown inside.

"That's alright, baby." He says and opens up a couple of drawers in the dresser. "You can wear your jeans and throw on one of my t-shirts." He hands me one of his charcoal gray cotton shirts and bends down to get my jeans and bra. "This will just be for today until we get you some of your own."

I take the shirt and pants and go to the bathroom to change. My jeans are now dry as I slip them over my hips. The soft shirt caresses my skin as I slip it over my head and over my torso. I take a look at myself in the mirror. I actually don't look that bad. The jeans a t-shirt together look casual, but fit well together and my face and neck are covered in foundation so there are no bruises visible.

Christian knocks on the door. "Ana, are you ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready." I say and open the door. Christian is dressed in dark blue jeans that hang off his hips, a plain black sweater that hugs all of his toned muscles, and his hair sticking in all different directions across his forehead. He looks like a picture of a fucking magazine cover. He reaches out and grabs my hand and pulls me with him into the hallway.

"Taylor is outside waiting for us." He says as we walk into the elevator.

"Why is he coming with us?" I ask as the doors open. The SUV is parked with Taylor sitting in the driver's seat. Christian opens one of the back doors for me and I climb in and sit on the warm leather seats.

"Hello, Taylor." I say.

"Miss Steele." He looks through the mirror and nods in acknowledgement.

Christian slides in next to me and shuts the door. "Taylor, please take us down 7th street. Ana needs to pick up some clothing.

"Yes, Sir." He pulls the car out of the garage and into traffic. I feel one of Christian's hands slide over and rest on my knee. His thumb strokes invisible circles.

"Ana," He whispers next to my face. "I don't want to frighten you, but those men that took you are still out there." His words sends chills up my spine and I shiver. "Taylor is here to protect you. Nothing bad will come to you." He says solidly and kisses my temple.

This entire situation makes my stomach feel uneasy. What is something bad does happen? Those men are still out there and they're dangerous. That man knows Christian somehow. He clearly has some kind of issues with him, but I can't begin to think what they might be. By being with Christian I'm also putting his life in danger. I'd never be able to live with myself if something terrible happens to him as well.

"Hey," Christian's soft voice pulls me out of my thoughts. I turn my head to look into his eyes. "Everything will be fine." He smiles and rubs more soothing circles on my leg.

_Yeah. _I think to myself. _I hope you're right. _


	15. Shopping Time

Christian and I walk through the stores hand in hand. We've walked up and down the streets and have been in every shop that has Christian's approval. He's apparently my bag carrier for the day. He's holding my hand in one of his and about five shopping bags in the other. So far, Christian has bought me all the main essentials; jeans, t-shirts, button downs, jackets, and he even came in with me to pick out bras and panties. I wouldn't have expected anything less from him in all honestly. It's a little uncomfortable though. All these stores are ridiculously expensive and he's just throwing around money like it's nothing. I have to admit though, having new clothes is a great feeling. I just wish it didn't involves walking around on my feet for several hours.

"Christian," I say as we're crossing the street to get to another high-end store. "As much as I appreciate this and love my new clothes, I think I need to take a break."

He stops and tucks me into his side. "Would you like to grab something to eat then? I think there's a nice tea place somewhere."

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea. My feet feel like they're about to break off."

"Well we can't have that." He take my hand and guides me down the street. We turn into a little glass door and walk into a small, but very eloquent looking dining room. There's a young, blonde hostess standing at a podium holding two menus. She takes one look at me and then moves over to the handsome man standing next to me. Her eyes rake him from head to toe and everywhere in-between. I see her cheeks get all red and she immediately starts pushing her hair back behind her ears.

"We'll have a table for two." Christian says and pulls me closer to his side.

_Yeah, that's right. _

"Y-yes, Sir." She stammers and walks back into the dim room. We are shown to a table in the corner of the room. "Is this alright?" She can't take her eyes off Christian.

"Yes, this is perfect. Thank you." Christian doesn't look at her and goes to pull a seat out. "After you." He bows and makes a wide gesture to the chair with an outstretched arm. He actually looks a little ridiculous. It's kind of sexy.

"Why thank you." I try my hardest to impress an English accent. I sit down and Christian sits in front of me. On the very white tablecloth there are to china plates stacked on top of each other, a roll of silver wear, at least three different sized spoons, a wine glass, and a regular cylinder glass.

"Wow." I say. "This place is fancy." Christian just shrugs his shoulders and picks up a menu.

I glance down at my menu and scan all the cursive words that are written in what appears to be Italian. As I'm trying to decide what to order another blonde waitress comes by and fills the regular glasses with ice water. She was obviously told about Christian by the other girl. While she's filling our glasses, she stares at him out of the corner of her eyes. I just patiently sit there and roll mine.

"Do you know what you want?" She straightens herself and only looks at Christian while asking the question. Christian just keeps his eyes on me the entire time.

"Baby, did you decide what you want?" He smiles at me, obviously showing his annoyance at the waitress. I decide to play along.

"Oh, I don't know what I want, Babe. I'll just get whatever you're having." I smile boldly at him.

He smile and finally turns to look at our company. "We'll have two cups of Tieguanyin Tea. Thank you." He hands her the menus.

"And I'll have a glass of red wine." I speak up. I've had this craving for a glass of wine all day.

Christian raises an eyebrow at me. "Well then make that two glasses." He says to the waitress. She takes our drink order and grabs the menus and walks away.

"Getting a little bold are we?" Christian asks as he unfolds his rolled up silver wear. I'm assuming he's referring to the wine.

"I feel like having a drink." I say simply. He looks at me questionably. I look down at the hands in my lap. "Christian, I'm not an alcoholic." I beat him to the punch.

His eyes go wide and he actually looks a little flustered. "Ana, I would never say that." He says too quickly. "I just… I'm just a little surprised is all."

I take a deep breath and let it back out before I continue speaking. "Christian, I used alcohol to make myself feel numb. I didn't want to feel empty so I did drink a lot." I say honestly. "But I can control myself. A glass of wine isn't going to send me into rehab." I say. I look up at him and see his gray eyes looking into mine. He almost looks sad.

"I know, Ana." He says softly. "I understand." He reaches his hand across the table with his palm facing up. I take one hand from my lap and place in into his. I like the feeling I get when my skin touches his. It's like a jolt of electricity is flowing through my body.

Our little moment is interrupted by a vibration coming from underneath the table. Christian rolls his eyes and slides his phone out of his pocket. He presses one button and puts it up to his ear.

"Grey." He says sternly. I hear a loud, fast murmuring coming from the other end. I see Christian's eyebrows turn down in confusion as he's still listening to the voice on the other end.

"Yeah, she's here with me right now." He says into the phone and glances up at me.

_What? _I think. Who could he possibly be talking to that wants anything to do with me?

He listens some more. "She's been back for about a couple days now." Silence. "Yeah, mom already took care of it." More silence. "Yeah, alright then. I'll take to her about it." He presses another button and slides the phone away.

Before I even have the chance to speak he opens his mouth to talk. "That was Elliot." He says.

Elliot? What would he want?

"He says that he's been trying to call me for a while, but I've had my phone turned off for a couple days."

"Oh." I say. "Well what does he want? What did he say about me?"

As if on cue, Blondie comes back with a tray of our drinks. She quietly sets them down and pours the wine into our glasses before walking away without even a glance at Christian. I take a swallow of my wine and set it back down while waiting for Christian to answer.

"He said that Kate's been going crazy trying to find you." He looks up from his drink. "She and Jose have been trying to call your cell phone and trying to find out where you went. When she couldn't find you she went to my brother to see if he heard anything from me, but I couldn't tell him anything since I didn't have my phone on at the time."

My hand freezes on my glass of wine. "Wait. Kate's been trying to look for me?" I can hear the disbelief in my own voice.

Christian set his hands on the table and sighs. "Yes, Sweetheart. Believe it or not, there are people who care about you." He moves on hand on top of mine. "You just ran away before they could show it." He strokes his fingers over my skin. "Plus throwing away your phone didn't help much."

I can't believe it. All this time I thought that nobody was worried that I went missing. I said all of those horrible things to Kate and Jose and yet they still care for me. I feel like a rock has been dropped in my stomach. How could I have been that person? I hurt the people I loved the most when all they wanted to do was to help me.

"Baby, don't cry." I didn't even realize I was until Christian wipes the water from underneath my eyes. "They forgive you and are just glad that you're safe." He cradles the side of my face with his hand. I close my eyes and lean into his touch.

"But, I've hurt them so much. I mean, what kind of a person just tells their friends to screw off and then goes to get herself killed?" My voice gets louder with each word. "I'm not a good person, Christian. I can't be." My throat gets tighter and tighter.

Christian looks at me with stern eyes. "Anastasia Rose Steele," His voice is hard. "I'm will not let you talk about yourself that way. Look at me." I snap my eyes from the tablecloth and back to his.

"You were scared." His voice is a little softer now. "You were alone and didn't know what to do. They understand where you were coming from. They love you, Ana. I love you and I want to make things right between the three of you." He moves his hand from my face and runs his fingers down my arm. Chills vibrate through my body and I feel heat move up to my face.

"Kate and Jose would like for us to go out to dinner with them tonight."

I don't know if I'm ready for that. What would I say to them?

"With who?" I ask.

"Kate, Jose, Elliot, and the two of us." He replies.

There's nothing I wouldn't do to make things right between me and my friends. I'll swallow what little dignity I have left and grovel on my knees for their forgiveness if I have to.

"Alright." I say and nod my head. "I'll go."

Christian smiles and leans over the table to kiss my lips. "Thank you, Ana."

I smile back and go to take another sip of my wine.

"I do have one request though." I hear Christian say from over his own glass. I don't like the sound of this. "You have to let me buy you a dress."

I roll my eyes and smile at him.

_Whatever makes this easier. _


	16. Picking Out the Right Dress

"Christian, I don't think any of these are going to look good." I run my hand up and down the racks of designer dresses. They're all low-cut and are made for women who have nothing to hide. Most of these are going to show my bruises on my chest and I don't think any amount of make-up is going to help.

"Of course they're going to look fantastic on you, Ana." Christian stands at my side and looks at a couple of dresses himself. "Just pick out whatever one you want and we'll try it on."

I sigh deeply. I walk over to a little blue dress that's hanging up next to a mannequin. It's a dark navy blue with a low neckline that does this little crisscross thing in the front and ties to the back. In the center of the chest is a little silver ring that ties the piece together. With the way it's cut, most of my bruises should be covered or go unnoticed.

Christian walks up behind me and looks at the dress in front of me. "I like it." He says. "Let me go get Isla so she can help you try one on." He walks away.

_Isla? How does he know her?_

I move closer to the dress and take a look at the designer price tag. _Holy shit! _This one scrap of material costs more than I made in a couple months combined!

"Christian, this is really freaking expensive!" I gasp as he and a tall, blonde woman make their way over.

"Baby, quit worrying about the prices and just get whatever you like."

"Miss Steele, I'd be happy to fit you and help you pick out a dress. In fact, that one you're looking at right now was just imported from France. The fabric is one hundred percent authentic and the diamonds in the center are all real." She flashes her pearl white teeth at me. She seems sweet enough to help me pick out a dress.

"Just put whatever she wants on here." Christian pulls out his wallet and slides out a platinum credit card. He hands it over to the saleswoman and turns to me. "I need to step outside real quick to return some business calls. I'll only be a minute." He presses a quick kiss on my forehead. "Just don't take anything off until I see it first, okay?" He winks at me and heads towards the door.

"Wow, you must be doing something right. I don't know one man that would hand his credit card over to a woman." Isla makes a face and turns back to the dresses. "This one is really spectacular. It would look fantastic with your complexion."

With Isla leading me around the store, we pick up two more dresses that she wants me to try on. As we're heading toward the dressing rooms, Christian walks up and grabs my hand.

"Do I get to see them?" He asks and grins down at me. I blush a little and look down as I nod my answer. "Great." He says. Isla leaves us alone and hangs the dresses on a hanger outside the door. The dressing room we're in is about the size of a large walk-in closet. The carpet is completely white, there's a crystal chandelier hanging in the middle of the room, and there's even a nice little couch right in front of the mirror.

"Well," I drag out the word. "Which one would you like to see first?"

He keeps his eyes on me as he slowly sits down on the couch and spreads his arms out over the back. His eyes run over me from top to bottom. I feel a warm hear rush through my toes and up to the top of my head.

"Try on the blue one. The first one you saw." He nods to the dress hanging up.

I grab it from the hanger and look at him questionably.

"What?" He asks. I just continue to give him a look. "Ugh, fine. We'll do this your way." He groans and covers his eyes with both of his hands. "Just tell me when you have it on."

I laugh and start peeling off my clothes and begin to slip on the dark blue dress. The material feels so smooth and soft against my skin. I fix the cross straps in the back so they lay smoothly against my skin. Once I feel like I have it on correctly I turn around and look at myself in the floor length mirror. I'm actually surprised at what I see. The dark, navy blue color looks almost fantastic against my pale skin tone. The tighter waist pulls in just enough to make it look like I have some curves and the diamond ring in the middle is set off by the lighting. I do a quick turnaround so I can see the back. I can't help but smile at the way the dress makes me feel. I actually feel somewhat attractive in this thing.

"Ana?" I hear Christian moan from the couch. "I'm getting very impatient over here."

"Okay, you can look now." I turn back around as he opens his eyes. His grey eyes become wide and his face is in shock. "Wow, Ana." He makes a whistling noise and stands up and makes his way over to where I'm standing. "You look absolutely amazing."

"You think?" I say and turn back to look in the mirror. "You don't think it's too much?" I fiddle with the fabric at my thighs.

Christian comes up behind me and wraps his arms around my waist and rests his chin on my shoulder. He plants soft kisses up my neck and looks into my eyes through the mirror. "Nothing is too much when it comes to you, my dear." His words make my heart flutter in my chest. He continues to kiss his way up my neck and to my lips. He uses his tongue to ask for my permission. I open my mouth and entangle my tongue with his. He turns me around so that I'm completely pressed up against his hard chest. We continue with deep kissing and he slowly slides his hands down my back and cups the back of my thighs in his large hands. I feel him lift me up and I'm forced to wrap my legs around his waist all while I'm keeping my mouth on his. His low moan vibrates through my mouth and causes me to make a little noise of my own. We back up into the small couch and his falls backwards so I'm straddling his lap.

"Oh, Anastasia." He sighs into my mouth. His mouth continues to work hard on mine while his hands run over my thighs and onto the small of my back.

"Christian," I can't help but moan into his mouth. This feeling coursing through me is too much to handle at the moment. I feel like I'm not even in control of my own body. It's as if our bodies are magnets and we just can't help but be attracted to one another. "We should really stop." I don't even believe the words coming out of my mouth. To tell the truth, I don't really want to stop anyway and I'm glad when he doesn't. He quickly stand up and places me down on the couch and lays on top of me. He's so gentle to make sure that I don't feel any of his body weight on me. I only feel his mouth all over my face as I grip his hair with both hands. Pure euphoria rushes through me and he grazes his teeth over the shell of my ear. I hear myself moan as I throw my head back. These feeling should be foreign to me, but it's like we're back to our old selves again. As if nothing between us never happened and I wasn't completely almost raped by gang members.

It's as if a bucket of ice water just got dumped on me. I freeze, but Christian doesn't seem to notice. He kisses down my neck while his hands move up the font of my stomach and onto my chest.

"Christian," I find my voice and push up on his shoulders. "Christian, stop." I push harder. He jumps off me as if he's just been shocked. He looks down at me with horrified eyes and a heaving chest.

"Shit, Ana." He gasps trying to catch his breath. "I wasn't thinking and got carried away." He calms down and sits next to me on the couch. He helps me sit up and keeps his hands resting lightly on my back.

"It's alright." I say and I mean it. It's not his fault that I can't deal with his hands all over me like that. Maybe I never will be able to get past this wall. Maybe Christian won't want to keep me anymore because I can't let him touch me in the way he needs. I can feel myself start to hyperventilate with the same thoughts.

"I think this dress is the one." Christian says softly from my side. He runs his fingers up and down my back. I can't find it in me to answer him right away. "Ana?" I hear him say in my ear.

I snap out of my trance and turn my head to look at him. His copper hair is all messed up from my fingers, his cheeks are flushed pink, and his lips are plump and swollen with kisses.

"I'm fine." I manage to say with a straight face. "I guess we found the one then, huh?" I smile up at him and he returns the gesture.

"Well alright then. We should probably get going so Isla doesn't come busting down the door." He smiles and helps me up from the couch. He turns me around and helps slide the dress off so that I'm just in my bra and underwear. "Jesus." I hear him sigh from behind me as he runs his hands down my arms. "You are just too perfect." He kisses the top of my head.

"Can you hand me my clothes, please?" I point to wherever I threw them down. He pick them up and helps me put them back on before we walk out the door together. I check myself in the mirror before we leave so I can try and smooth down my messed up hair and wipe my lips a couple times.

Isla is standing outside and looks at us with a smug look. She shake her head and walks over toward us.

"So," She says. "Which one will it be?"

"We'll take the blue one." Christian take the dress from my hands and hands to her. "Go ahead and pick out some jewelry to go with it." He tells the woman and sends her on her way. "Just makes sure it's all real and expensive." He calls out and smiles down at me. I just stand there and roll my eyes. _My control freak. _


	17. Dinner Time

We're back at Escala and I'm standing in front of the full length mirror looking at my reflection. We're about ready to leave for dinner with Kate and Elliot and I can't help calm the gigantic butterflies in my stomach.

"Christian, I feel like I'm going to throw up." He comes to stand behind me and puts his hands on top of my shoulders.

"Baby, everything is going to be fine." He squeezes me gently. "They're your family. All they want is for you to be happy and safe." He bends down and kisses me on the cheek. "You look absolutely ravishing by the way."

I look into the mirror and stare at my reflection. The dress does look pretty good on me. It fits perfectly and the color complements my skin well. Christian had Isla pick out some diamond jewelry and sparkly heels to tie everything together. I let my hair down over one shoulder and I even applied some mascara after I drowned myself in foundation.

"I just don't know what I'm going to say." I haven't seen Kate and Jose since that night I blew up in their faces and I bet Elliot is hard core judging me right now.

"Just let everything fall into place." Christian says while playing with a strand of my hair. "They love you." He finishes softly.

I take a deep breath and slowly let it out. "Okay, then let's get going." I turn around to face an extremely handsome Christian. He's dressed in a pair of black slacks and had a black sports coat over a crisp, white dress shirt. His hair is pushed to one side, but still had that bed head appeal. He looks delicious enough to eat.

He smiles and holds out his elbow for me to grasp. I take it and we're heading towards the elevator.

"Is Taylor coming with us?" I ask as we head down to the garage. The doors slide open and Christian pulls me toward his R8.

"He'll be around." He says and opens my passenger door. He gets in on the driver's side and starts the car. The engine roars to life and the leather seats softly vibrate underneath my body. The car pulls out of the garage and into the Seattle traffic. Christian obviously sees how nervous I am and places his hand on my shaking knees and keeps it there until we end up at the restaurant.

We pull into a half circle where there's a valet coming around to open mine and Christian's door. Christian hands the boy the keys and takes my hand. The car is driven away as we walk up the rotating doors. The restaurant is extremely fancy. The lights are dim and there's a huge fountain right in the center. The tables are all clothed in white and have crystal wine glasses already placed on top. Up in front a man wearing all black and gelled black hair greets us with a smile.

"Mr. Grey. Miss Steele." He nods to both of us. _ How does he know who we are? _"I have the rest of your party waiting right over in the corner. Right this way." He begins walking across the large space. Christian grabs my hand and leads me behind him as we follow the waiter.

"They love you." I hear him whisper into my ear. I tighten my grip on his hand as we make our way back to the corner.

My heart leaps as I see all three of them sitting at a round table with wine glasses all around it. Kate is the first to see us and lifts her blonde head. Her eyes widen and she looks at me and before I know it she is out of her seat and running toward us. We smash together and our arms automatically wrap around one another. I didn't realize I was crying until I hear both of our sobbing combined together. We don't say anything right away. She just clutches me to her chest and I do the same with her.

_God, I've missed her so much. _

We hug and cry for what seems like hours until we both pull back and look at each other. Kate looks gorgeous in a tight black cocktail dress and her hair is tied up in the back. She look me up and down before pulling me back into another bear hug.

"Oh, my God, you fucking bitch." She growls into my ear. "If anything would have happened to you, I would have personally killed you." I can't help but laugh at her words. This is the Kate I knew before everything went to shit.

"Kate, I am so sorry." I wipe the tears under my eyes. "I've missed you so much." I pull her in tighter. "I feel so stupid. Please, please forgive me."

"Okay, you're forgiven. Just don't be stupid next time, okay?" She looks into my eyes as I nod. "Good. Now let's go eat this meal your boyfriend is paying for. I'm starving." I giggle and my stomach does little flips when she refers to Christian as my boyfriend. _Is that what he is?_

I've been so caught up in our reunion that I completely forgot that everyone else is here. Kate and I turn around to see Jose and Elliot watching us from their seats. Christian is standing next to his chair with an approving smile on his face. I find my feet and go over to sit next to Christian. He pulls out the chair he's standing next to and motions for me to sit. I fold the dress under my thighs and sit. Christian sits next to me on one side while Kate sits on my other. Elliot is next to Christian and Jose is next to him. I scoot my chair up closer and try not to jostle the candle lit in the center of the table.

"So, Ana…" Jose starts off all awkwardly. "How are things going?" He looks as if he doesn't know what to say. I guess I know where he's coming from. He looks great, though. I can't believe I cut him and Kate out of my life like that.

"Jose, I'm so glad to see you." I smile at him. He smiles back and grabs my hands from across the table.

"Girl, you have no idea how much we've missed you." He pats my hands gently and then draws them back into his lap. I feel Christian move his hand onto my thigh underneath the table. I glance over at his and he's smiling down at me.

"Yeah, Ana." Elliot says from his seat. He runs a hand through his hair. "You wouldn't believe how much I had to hear this guy complaining about not being able to find you." He gabs his elbow over at Christian who just slaps him away. I don't know what to say to that so I just give him a polite smile.

The waiter comes by to take our food orders and refills our wine glasses. I reach out and take a sip of the delicious red wine.

"Mia wanted to be here." Elliot says with his glass pressed to his lips. "She had some work to do for our mother so she couldn't make it. She told me she was going to set up a shopping date for you two, though." I can practically hear Christian's eyes rolling.

"Well I can't wait to see her again." I say and take another sip.

Everybody talks amongst themselves for a while. Kate leans over and tells me about some kind of "awesome" outfit that she wanted to buy the other day. I hear Elliot and Christian laugh and make jokes about Mia and then talk about business stuff. Jose chips in to both conversations and just continues to drink his wine. The atmosphere is a lot lighter than I expected it to be. There's no tension between anybody and everyone seems happy and enjoying themselves. The attention isn't all on me and that's exactly how I like it.

When our food arrives our entire table goes silent and Christian raises his wine glass.

"I'd like to thank everybody for coming tonight. I know how much Ana has missed you guys and knows how much you love her. Everybody forgives and forgets and moves on to new beginnings."

The rest of us raise our glasses in the middle until they clink together.

"To new beginning." The four of them say in unison and take a drink. I put the glass to my lips and take a huge swallow. Tears prickle my eyes and I don't even care. This time I can honestly say that they're happy tears. These are the people that I belong with. These are the people that love me no matter what. For the first time in a while I actually feel like I'm home.


	18. Our Night Together

After we all ate our dinner, which was delicious, Christian made it necessary to order each of us a huge slice of chocolate cake. We're all sitting around the table clanking forks against plates and drinking an excessive amount of wine. I think I've had more wine to drink here than I can even remember. I've also noticed that Christian hasn't said anything about it and isn't really drinking his own glass in the first place.

"Ah, bro." Elliot says while placing one hand on his stomach and another on his brother's shoulder. "You always know the best restaurants."

"And the expensive ones." Kate mumbles from her seat. She looks over at me and winks and I blush.

When everyone is done eating and our wine glasses are almost empty, our waiter comes buy and hands the check to Christian who just sticks a card in it and hands it back. Jose is the first to stand up and start the movement of leaving. Before Christian has the opportunity to take my hand, Kate steps in front of him and pulls me into another hug.

"Oh, Ana, it was so great seeing you." She pulls back so she can see my face. "Just don't be a stranger, okay? I gave Christian my phone number and my address to give to you, so I expect a lot of Ana." She points her finger at me.

I laugh and give her another short hug. "I promise I won't run away again." We part and Elliot comes over to grab he hand. He ruffles my hair and they both thank Christian for everything. Jose even shakes Christians hand and give me an awkward bear hug.

Once we're outside and the three of them head to their cars, Christian grabs my waist and pulls me to his side.

"Did you have a nice time?" He bends down and whispers in my ear. More shivers run through my body. "Cold?" Christian asks and slides off his jacket and slips it over my shoulders. I grin up at his and lean into his side so that my head in underneath his chin. He smells like I remember. I tilt my nose up so it skims across his jaw and over his neck.

He chuckles and I feel his eyes watching me. I make my way up to his ear before I hear the R8 engine roar up to the walkway. Christian pulls me along with him as he takes the keys from the valet. When he opens my door I stumble in and have to grab the door for support.

"Whoa," He says and grabs me with both hands. "Maybe I shouldn't have let you drink all that wine." His voice is serious but he's still smiling. He finally helps get me inside the car and he gently pulls away into the city traffic.

"Dinner was great, Christian." I become bold and reach over to run my hand over his upper thigh. I see him swallow hard but he keeps his eyes on the road.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, Anastasia." He stops at a red light and leans over to kiss me. I open my mouth and my tongue reaches out to find his. He moans and takes his hands off the steering wheel to cup my face. My own hands hold onto his shoulders and pull him more towards me. Just as his hands start to slide down my neck, there's a loud car horn that signals the light has now turned green. Christian makes a grunting sound and pulls back to ease the car pass the intersection. I see that his breathing matches the same pace as mine. I lean back against the window and try to grab ahold of the hot emotions that are raging through my body right now. Maybe it's the wine, but I feel this electric buzz running through me right now. I can't stop staring at the man sitting a foot away from me. He's so fucking beautiful. I keep my eyes on him until I realize that we're back at Escala. We pull the car into the garage and Christian helps me get out. The hand around my waist sends flutters throughout my stomach and my heartbeat goes wild.

When we arrive up in the penthouse, I notice that everything is dark. The only light is the ceiling lamps right about the kitchen counter. I see that the stove says it's almost midnight.

"Jeez, have we really been out that long?" I'm astonished that we've been at dinner for more than three hours.

"Yes, babe." Christian says from behind as he guides me towards the bedroom. "And now it's time to get you out of this dress." We enter the bedroom and Christian stops to face me towards him. He looks down on me with such a warm expression that lifts his entire face and lightens his beautiful gray eyes. "I'm glad you had a good time, baby." He bends to kiss me on my bare shoulder. "You deserve people who love you." His soft lips press onto mine.

"You don't know how much I appreciate what you've done for me, Christian." I say. I take my arms and wrap them around his neck. As I stare into his eyes I gently run my nails through his glossy hair. "Before everything got crazy, before I ran away like an idiot, I knew that you were someone special to me." I run my fingertips over his cheekbones. "What you've done for me out of the goodness of your heart when nobody else would…" I have to stop and clear my throat before I start crying. "You're one of the best things that has ever happened to me. Thank you for giving me my life back after I completely screwed it up." Every word is true. This man has a special place in my heart. He is my heart.

I see his eyes glaze over with moisture. He swallows before he buries his face in my hair and takes a deep breath.

"Oh, Ana." He sighs and kisses the side of my face. "You have no ideas how heavy my heart feels right now. It feels as if my chest is about ready to burst. I love you, Ana." He whispers and tugs me closer into his chest. "I would go to the ends of the Earth to make sure that you're safe. I'd give up everything I have just to have you right here with me. Every day without you was a complete disaster. I panicked when I couldn't find you and when I did…" He pauses to catch his breath. He makes fists against my back and crushes me so tight that I have issues breathing. "God, Ana, I'm just go glad you're safe now. You're here with me." He pecks quick kisses all over the side of my face.

I close my eyes and just ravish in the feeling of him holding me. His hands rub circles over my back and I can feel his warm breath against my neck. The spark of energy is still there and it sends warmth throughout my entire body. I want this man. I need things to be right between us. He needs to know how much I appreciate him and how much I love him.

_Love him? Do I love him?_

Yes. It's an easy answer. I love this man to the extreme. I think deep down I've always known it but now it's defiantly written in stone.

I press my face into his neck and continue to stroke his hair. "I love you, Christian." I release the words and it feels like a huge weight was lifted off my heart. I get little butterflies in my stomach and my hands start shaking in his hair. I wonder if he feels what I feel between us. If he feels this strong pull.

I know he heard what I said because he rears his head back and his expression is a mix of awe and relief. I can't hold back the giant grin that spreads across my own face. I stroke his face some more and I feel his lips spread underneath my fingertips. Before I know what's going on. Christian smashed my face into his. His lips are rough, but gentle at the same time. I gasp and adapt to his quick moving lips. His tongue fight with mine and he runs his hands from my back down to the backs of my upper thighs.

I know what he wants. I want it too. I want things to be normal for us again. I want to be able to be with him without freezing up or feaking out. He goes too fast for me to proceed my thoughts. His hands are already working on the zipper in the back. If we're going to do this, then I want to do it slow and gently. All love.

"Christian, Christian," I sputter out against his lips. He gradually pulls his hands away from my body entirely and bows his head in shame. I think he's getting the wrong idea. I pull his face up to meet mine. He looks like a sad puppy that was caught chewing up a pair of shoes.

"I want you." I simply say. His eyes brighten up and I see I got his attention. I want you, but I want to do this slowly. I want to know that you love me and won't hurt me." He looks down at me with an unreadable expression. At first I think that he's going to pull away, but he slowly bends his head and I feel his warm lips press against mine.

"I will never, ever hurt you, Ana." He says against my skin. "I love you so much. I want to show you how much I love you." He strokes some hair back from my face. "Please, Ana, would you let me make soft, gentle love to you?" With every word that comes out of his mouth I am given a soft kiss. How does he expect me to say no to that? His words alone are sending fire to the middle of my thighs.

"God, Christian, please make love to me." I feel like I'm begging but at this point I don't even care.

"Then let's get you out of this dress." His voice is raspy. I feel his hands run up my back and pull the zipper down. Both of his hands pull the material away from my back and I feel a warm breeze run over my skin. He pulls the straps down my arms and lets the entire thing fall to the floor. I'm left standing in my heels, bra, and panties. Christian's eyes run over my body from top to bottom. Without thinking about it, I go to hind myself with my arms until his hands hold them back.

"Don't hide from me." He says softly. "You are gorgeous, Anastasia. I want you so badly." His large hands run down my shoulders and take my bra straps with them. Once they're off, I make my move and reach behind me to unhook the rest of it. I hold my breath as it slides off me completely and joins the dress. Christian's eyes go completely back as he stares at my naked chest.

"Jesus, baby." He pulls me close and shoves his tongue into my mouth. I don't find it very fair that I'm the only one naked here. I press my hands between us and start to unbutton his shirt. It falls open and I run my hands over hiss tight stomach. I make sure to feel every groove and hard muscle. I feel him shiver underneath my touch which just encourages my boldness. I reach lower and find the button on his pants. With shaking hands I flick it open and pull down the zipper.

"Mmm, baby I've missed you." He moans into my mouth. He moves his shoulders back to let the shirt fall onto the floor with the rest of the clothes. Once that's off he uses his hands to slide his pants off so that he's just standing in his boxers and I'm still in my panties. "Ana, are you sure you want to do this?" He asks against my neck.

I whimper as he runs his wet tongue against my sensitive skin. "Yes, Christian. I want you in every way." I hear him make some sort of growling noise and he gently pushes me back against the giant bed. I lie down on the freshly made sheets and feel Christian's weight press against mine. My breasts are pressed up against his hard chest and out lower bodies are ground up against each other. For a brief moment I get a flash back of Black Eyes when he was laying on top of me and taking full advantage.

"Shh, Ana, It's just me, baby." Christian whispers into my ear and strokes my side.

I relax a little and smile up at him to let him know I'm okay. My body feels as if it's on fire. I need some kind of friction. I lift my hips up to his so our lower bodies are grinding against each other. I make soft whimpering noises as Christian moans and attacks my mouth. We slide further up the bed and Christian lifts up on his knees to look down on me. After a moment he hooks his thumbs into my panties and slowly pulls them down to my feet and over my shoes. Once they're off he unhooks each of my shoes and throws them somewhere in the dark room. I am now completely naked. Christian comes back down to lay on top of me and I feel all of his bare flesh press up against mine. He must have removed his boxers as well. I feel how hard he is pressed against my thigh. Warm heat spreads throughout me and I feel my nipples tighten.

"God, Christian." I moan into the room. He kisses my lips before making his way down my neck. He takes his time and make sure that every centimeter of my skin is covered in his soft, wet kisses. My heart beats wildly as he makes his way past my neck and onto my chest. I feel the tip of his tongue make circles over one of my nipples before he takes it fully into his mouth and sucks. My eyes roll into the back of my head and I grip his hair in my fingers. My breathing turns rapid and my chest heaves against his mouth. He does the same with the other nipple.

Lower down I feel one of his fingers run up my sex. I pull his hair tighter and moan into the darkness.

"God, baby, you're so wet." He takes his finger and gently rubs my clit to the point where I'm thrashing about on the bed. When I feel him enter my channel and curve upwards I clench my thighs to keep him there. His mouth is busy running over my body and I can taste sweat on my lower lip. I can practically feel my wetness drip onto the bed. This is the Christian that I remember.

"Are you ready for me, baby?" He moans into my neck. I tilt my hips up to his as my answer. I feel him align our bodies together and the tip of his is pressed up against me. I begin shaking and grab the back of his shoulders for support. He presses further into me and I let out a low scream while he groans loudly.

_God, I remember this. _

He keeps pushing until he's fully inside of me and then stops. His eyes are burning into mine and he lifts his hand up to cup my cheek tenderly.

"Am I hurting you?" He asks with a strained voice. I know he desperately want to move, but doesn't want to do it without my permission. I don't know how much longer I can last. I already feel the tingles fire through my body.

"No, Christian, please just move." I whimper as he begins thrusting into me. He pulls out to the tip and slides right to the hilt. My nails dig into his shoulders and my legs wrap around his lean waist. I feel his rough breath in my ear. I turn my head to the side and kiss him with everything I have. He's still moving inside of me and I hear his heavy grunts that signal when he's about ready to come. He quickens his pace and I see white stars flash behind my lids as my muscles clench around him. I bite into Christian's shoulder as I moan out his name. I feel him spasm inside of me and release himself. He moans my name into my mouth and begins to slow his thrusting.

He falls on top of me and we both try to control our rapid breathing. My body feels like jelly. I have a drunken grin on my face and wrap my arms around Christian to hold him closer. He doesn't say anything, but he showers every inch of skin he can reach with light kisses. We lay like that for a while until I feel myself go limp and my eyes start to close. Christian lifts his head from my chest and kisses my lips once more before untangling himself from me and lifts me underneath the covers. He pulls them up to my neck and kisses my shoulder before coming around behind me. He envelops me in his arms and lays my head between his chest and neck. Part of me think I should get a shower, but I'm too tired and comfortable to even move a muscle.

"God, I love you." I hear him whisper into my hair. I manage to snake my own arms around his hard waist and pull myself in deeper.

"I love you, Christian." I say into his neck and give him a quick kiss.

_God, I'm so tired. _

I feel is Christian's chest rising underneath my ear and his soft lips run over my forehead. I let my heavy eyelids close as I drift off to sleep naked with the only man I'll ever love.


	19. Breakfast at Christian's

Christian's POV

Dull sunlight streams in through the open curtains. I guess I forgot to shut them last night before we came in here. Oh, well. These windows are so tinted that you can't see in even if you press your face up to the glass.

I close my eyes and inhale deeply. I'm rewarded with the sweet smell of jasmine. Ana's back is pressed up against my chest and my arms are wound tightly around her tiny frame. I softly run my hand up her arm and to her shoulder. Her skin feels so soft and warm. I could touch her all day and never get tired. Her breathing is deep and even and every now and then she makes a little whistling sound with her nose.

I try not to make so much movement. She needs her sleep, especially after the previous night. I bury my face into her hair to contain my gigantic grin. Last night was well…it was just perfect. I love this girl so much and she finally sees that. She loves me, too, though. Those three words out of her mouth sent me skyrocketing. My heart finally feels as if it's completely thawed. All the stress and worry have just dissolved into warm and fuzzy feeling. She finally allowed herself to forget all her insecurities and fears and just felt pure loving emotion. She's always amazed me, but last night just proved that she's still the same strong, feisty girl that feel into my office so long ago.

I tighten my arms and kiss every square inch of her bare skin that I can reach. I glance up and see that the clock on the nightstand says that it's almost seven in the morning. I'm already up, but I know for a fact that Ana won't be awake for a couple more hours. I kiss her shoulder once more before I manage to peel myself away from her so I can go make her some well-deserved breakfast. I slide out of bed and grab my boxers that have been left on the floor. I gave Taylor and Mrs. Jones the weekend off, so there's really no need for me to put a shirt on. Taylor told me that he'll keep in touch and will let me know if he hears anything form the police. Luckily for me, Gail has left a note of foods as well as instructions that I need to make a great Saturday morning breakfast. Before I make my way into the kitchen I close the curtains in the room to block some of the sunlight so Ana can sleep a little better. I leave and read the note and go to grab the foods listed out of the cabinets and fridge. I guess we'll be having a big breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast, fresh fruit, yogurt, pancakes, and some kind of sausage. I take a calming breath and go to start working on the stove.

After what feels like an eternity, I look down at my handiwork. I have to say that I'm pretty pleased with myself. There's an array of foods placed out on the counter and I didn't manage to burn or undercook a single item. I smile to myself and glance over to see what time it is. The stove says it's almost nine now. Ana, should be waking up soon…or I could go wake her up.

I leave my food behind and make my way back into the bedroom. The room in bathed in a soft lightness and sunrays stream in through the curtains. Ana is laying in the middle of the bed now with the sheets tangled around her legs and part of her waist. Her arms are clutching my pillow to her face. I gently sit on the bed and lay down next to her. My face is so close to hers that I can feel her soft breath on my lips. I can't resist and press my lips to hers. Even though she's still asleep, her body responds to mine as her lips part and her tongue sweeps across my lower lip. While chuckling, I move my upper body so it's completely covering her bare torso and she's caged in by my arms. I move her long hair away from her neck and start showering her skin in wet kisses.

"Ana," I whisper into her skin. "It's time to wake up, baby." I become bold and swipe my wet tongue all the way up her neck and back down again. She starts to wiggle underneath me and when I lightly blow on my wet trail, I hear her moan into the pillow.

"Come on, Ana. I made some breakfast." I kiss her shoulder. "I didn't burn any of it." I press my cheek up to hers and hug her tighter. My heart skips a beat when I hear her girly giggles. Her hand comes up to touch my forearm and she begins to run her fingers up and down my arm.

"You didn't burn any of it?" She asks. "I have to say, I'm a little surprised." I can hear the smile in her sleepy voice. I take no mercy when I quickly hop off her and flip her over on her back. She's too shocked to do anything, but when I begin tickling her sides, Ana flips the fuck out and starts flopping around like a fish. She starts screeching like a little kid and begs me to stop. All I can do is just laugh. She's so freaking adorable. When she's struggling to catch her breath and she's losing motivation to push me off, I give up and just lay down. I press all of my weight on her and just lay there until she catches her breath. Her arms wrap around my neck and she just buries her little nose into my hair. \

"Well, now I guess I'm awake." She giggles and pulls a little chunk of my hair.

"Well, my job here is done, then." I squeeze her one last time and jump out of bed. She takes her time in untangling herself from the bed sheets. The white sheet falls away from her hips to reveal her entire naked body.

_She's a fucking goddess. _

"Um, Christian?" She pulls me out of my trance. "Where are my clothes?" She gets up and moves to her dress that is now crumbled up on the floor. "My normal clothes for that matter?"

"I put them up in the closet." I say and head in to get her something a little more comfortable. I come back with a pair of black yoga pants and a soft t-shirt. "Here you go, babe." I hand her the clothes and open up the dresser to get out a pair of panties and a matching bra of my choosing. Lace. Always lace.

"Thank you." She starts sliding the material over her flawless body. Once she's all dressed I take her hand and lead her into the kitchen where my amazing creation of food awaits.

"Wow, this looks pretty yummy." She sits down at one of the counter stools and picks up a piece of pineapple from a bowl. "How did you manage all this?"

"With a magic wand." I reply and take a tea out for her and coffee for me. I take my seat next to her and grab a piece of bacon.

_Not too shabby, Grey. _

"So," She mumbles while chewing a piece of toast. "What more delicious activities do you have planned for us today?" I catch her eyes twinkle from the side and a slow grin spreads across my face.

"Well," I chew slowly. "I can think of a couple that would be quite satisfying." Just for added effect, I wiggle my eyebrows at her. It works and she almost chokes on her food. Her face turns bright red.

"Um, speaking of that," She starts off slowly. Uh-oh, where is this heading? "Last night was…well it was great. It was more than great," Okay, good start. "But, um, we weren't necessarily too concerned with protection." Her face somehow becomes an even deeper red and she sets down her piece of toast to look at me.

It's true, though. In the heat of the moment I didn't even think about protection. I just wanted her. I feel some sort of queasiness in the pit of my stomach and force myself to take a drink. What if this one time was the time that Ana's body decides to get pregnant? I can't even concentrate on anything else besides that one thought.

"Christian?" I feel her hand grab my chin and turn my face so I'm looking at her. "You're lucky." She says. _What does that mean?_ "I've been on the pill ever sense you made me see Dr. Greene that one time. I take them almost every day and luckily for you, I took one because I had a feeling that something like that was going to happen." My face is still frozen, but I come back to life as she softly rubs my cheek with her thumb.

"Well then," I cough awkwardly. "I guess from now on we both need to be a little more careful." She nods and turns back to her food as if nothing ever happened.

"I'm serious," She take a bite of a pancake. "This is Mrs. Jones good." Another bite flies into her mouth. I turn back to my own food and laugh. This girl here has me wrapped tightly around her little finger.

Ana moves one hand from the counter and slides it over so it's resting on my knee. Just this one minor touch sends tiny tingles coursing through my body. I place my own hand on top of hers and rub little circles into her flesh. She seems so relaxed now. So at peace with herself. The fact that she's currently eating more than me right now puts an even bigger smile on my face. Every time I glace over at her she smiles and blushes. We eat our breakfast in comforting silence and just be with each other. This is what I love. I want every morning to be like this from now on.


	20. Test Drive

"So, what would you like to do today, babe?" Christian's hand rubs over my knee. I scrap my fork over my plate and catch the last bite of my breakfast. Christian is literally great at everything.

"Well…" I say and chew at the same time. "I'm perfectly alright with staying in all day." I look over at him and offer a sly smile. It works and he can't help but laugh. He sets his fork down and leans towards me.

"As much as I love that idea," His nose runs over the skin beneath my ear. "I want to spoil you in every way possible. Let's go out and do something and then we'll go with your plan later on tonight." His soft breath causes the hairs on my neck to stand up. His teeth graze my earlobe and gently bite down.

My eyelids close and I let out the breath I was holding in. "Don't you have to work?" My voice shakes a little.

"Mmm…" He mumbles into my shoulder. "Work can wait." He kisses my skin and then leans back to look at my face. He brings his hand up and caresses my cheek lovingly. "Let's go for a walk."

He grabs my hand and pulls me away from the counter. We leave our dirty dishes behind and walk into the bedroom. Christian leads me into the closet and grabs some clothes off the hangers. I watch as his back muscles work to slide his shirt over his lean figure. He works on his shoes next and watches me from the corner of his eye.

"Ana, your shoes are over there." He nods further into the closet.

"Oh, right." I blush and walk over to pick up a pair of women's running shoes. I slip them on and take a quick glance at myself in the full length mirror hanging on the wall. I do a quick run through of my hair with my fingers and pull the mess over my shoulder. I turn my face from side to side trying to look at my bruised face from all angles. It's really cleared up a lot. You'd barely be able to tell that it was practically black at one point.

"Ready?" I feel Christians hand lightly rub against my back. I turn away from the mirror and find a very casual, but very handsome Christian dressed in his pair of loose sweatpants, plain t-shirt, and running shoes.

"Yeah." I say and take his outstretched hand. We walk out of the bedroom and head toward the elevator. "We're not walking far are we?" I ask as we slowly drop down toward the garage.

"No. We're just going out to get some fresh air." The elevator door opens and we're greeted with bright sunlight streaming in through the open garage walls. Christian grasps my hand tightly in his and we make our way out into the Seattle traffic. It's probably around ten o'clock already and there's still a ton of people running around like mad.

"Let's go this way." Christian leads us up the street with me practically glued to his side. I have to admit, I've missed being outside. The soft morning sun feels amazing against my skin and breathing in the fresh air seems to wake my senses up. I can't help but smile and move my hands and wrap them around Christian's tight forearm. He seems puzzled by my outgoing gesture and moves his eyes from my hands and up to my face. I look into his gorgeous gray eyes and just continue to smile. I haven't smiled like this in so long that it feels as if my face is going to crack. Before I know it, Christian stops our walking and pulls us to the very side of the sidewalk. He places his free hand on the side of my face and bends down to rub his lips against my forehead.

"You are so beautiful, Ana." He places a kiss on my head and then places another on my cheek and then another on the tip of my nose. "I want to see you smile like this all the time. Even in your sleep."

"Oh Christian…" I mumble against the skin of his neck. I inhale his musky sent and raise my lips up so they are pressed firmly against his. I decide to make the first move and part my lips so my tongue is able to snake out and connect with his bottom one. I run it across a couple times before I become bolder and completely thrust it into his opened mouth. Our tongues dance together and our lips move as one. I feel one of Christians hands move to frame my face while the other gently grips my waist. I can't help the little noises that make their way out of my mouth. We stay like this for a few more minutes…or hours, before Christian leans his head back and gasps for breath.

"Jesus, Ana." He breathes out. His gray eyes are wide and fogged up with lust. "What the hell am I going to do with you?" His voice is stern, but his eyes are loving and his mouth turns up into a smile. He takes the hand from my waist and uses it to brush a strand of hair out of my eyes and behind my ear. With all of this excitement I've completely forgotten that we are indeed out in public. I can feel the hot blush creep up my neck and I look around to make sure no one is gawking at us.

"Come." Christian says and takes my hand. "We need to start moving before I say fuck it and take you up against this wall in front of all Seattle." His words send my heart into my stomach. I want to believe that he's joking, but this is Christian we're talking about.

Christian and I walk a few more blocks until we meet a small area that pretty much resembles a small park. The grass is green and still appears damp with morning dew, the trees are in full bloom, and the sun brightly shines down on all the active people walking around. Are we here for a picnic?

"I have a surprise I want to show you." Christian leads me through the grassy area and over to the other side where the Audi SUV sits on the street. But that's not the only thing I see. Behind the black SUV sits a very white, very expensive looking Audi R8. My stomach is doing summersaults as Taylor opens his doors and is holding a set of keys in his raised arm.

_Oh my God…Fucker bought me a car. _

Before I even have time to respond properly, Christian grips my shoulders tight and squeezes.

"Well," He says. "What do you think?" I'm finally able to take my eyes off the car and turn around to look at him. I take a deep breath.

"You did not seriously just but me a car?" Pinch me.

To my surprise he chuckles and holds out his hand to take the keys from Taylor. "No, no you silly girl," He says with a smile on his face. "I didn't _just_ buy it. I got it a couple days ago. I just now had it delivered."

My head swims. He bought me a car? A car that coasts a normal person a three years salary. What the hell is wrong with him? Does he really feel this sorry for me that he feels the nerve to go out and buy me this extravagant gift?

"Christian…I…" I can't seem to find the words. I know I should be jumping up and down right now, but all I want to do is curl up into a ball of shame. I am not a fucking charity case.

"Ana, you don't have to say anything. Just take it for a test drive." He holds out his hand and places the keys in my open palm. I feel the weight of them in my hand before I looks up straight into his eyes.

"What is this to you?" I spit out. I feel a little guilty as I watch his face drop. His brow creases with confusion and his lips form a straight line.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean." His voice is now cold and reserved.

"I mean why are you giving this to me? Is it because you know I don't have anything of my own? Does every woman that's seen with you have to have some sort of pricey vehicle?" I feel the rage boil underneath my skin. Then it hits me. He didn't buy this for me because he felt sorry for me. He got it so I could leave. This was his goodbye. He wants me to drive away and never see him again.

Ice runs through my blood and I feel the moisture swell up behind my eyes. I continue to stare at him even as the picture becomes foggy. "You want me to leave don't you?" I let out a tiny sob. I wrap my arms around my waist so I can shut myself out for a minute. Tears flow from my eyes and stream down my cheeks.

"What? Ana, you cannot be serious right now." He has the nerve to sound shocked. He tries to pull my arms away from my body, but I make it difficult by keep turning away. When that doesn't work he results in gripping my face in his hand and frantically starts whipping away the tears. "Ana, baby…how could you ever think something like that?" His voice sounds raspy. "Ana, I bought you a car because you don't have one." I open my mouth to speak, but his shushes me. "You deserve the best, Ana. And I want to be the one to give that to you." He strokes my cheeks with his thumbs. "You're not a charity case, Ana. I did this because I love you. I want you to be happy again."

More guilt rushes through me. He really does love me and this is how I repay him? He pulls up my chin so my eyes meet his. He looks sad.

"You don't have to accept it if you don't wish to." He says quietly. I frantically start shaking my head back and forth.

"No, no, Christian," I try to get the words out as quick as possible. "I'm sorry. I just… I don't know. I love the car, I really do. It's just… I feel helpless." I bow my head down in more shame. I feel like a kicked puppy. Christian wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me into his hard chest.

"I get, Ana. I do." He says into my hair. "I love you so much. I want you to have the best of everything." I pull back a little and place my hands on his chest.

"I do have the best of everything. I have you." I smile up at him and watch his eyes light up. A giant smile appears on his beautiful face. Our lips meet and he kisses me like it's the last kiss ever.

"I love you, Ana. Believe me when I tell you that." He grabs my hands and holds them in one of his. "Now, how about we take this thing for a test dive and you can decide if you want to keep it or not." He takes the keys from my hand and dangles them in front of me.

"Okay." I say and snatch the keys from his hand. We walk over and Christian opens my door so I can slide into the soft leather seats. I put the keys in the ignition and start the engine. The car roars to life and sends all kinds of vibrations through the seats. Christian sits in the passenger side and makes a big display of putting on his seatbelt. I just roll my eyes and slowly pull out of the space.


End file.
